Second Glance: Untold Stories
by downpours
Summary: Sequel to my other fic, Second Glance. Explaining some unsolved issues. CHAPTER SEVEN UPLOADED.
1. Hello and Goodbye

_Note: This is a sequel. If you want to understand a lot, please go to my profile page and read 'Second Glance'. Or just take the spaces out off– http / www . fanfiction . net / s / 2772532 / 1 /_

_**Second Glance: Untold Stories **_

**Chapter One: Goodbye and Hello**

"Mina, are you alright?" Rai asked as she playfully poked her friend on the shoulder. Curiously, the high priestess glanced up, a half-eaten biscuit trapped in-between her lips. She looked unusually pale, and by the way she moved about, it was as if she had no energy whatsoever left.

They were in Maki's new apartment, a lot closer to the Prontera Castle. Since he was being promoted to higher ranks, he was getting paid more, and in consequence, got a lot more benefits. His new place was a lot better than the one he used to stay in, whose entrance was a dark alley with a groping old man.

A lot of things have changed as this chapter starts. For one, Mina had lost her murky brown hair, giving way to her the original shine of the long blonde hair that emphasized her natural beauty. The only reason she decided to even wear such a color was to escape people who wanted her death, and that wasn't a problem anymore.

Though to get her hair back to the way it was without the help of a hairstylist, a considerable amount of time was needed.

"Are you thinking of _that guy_ again?" Rai said with a sigh as gingerly she sat down beside Mina. "Get over him!"

Mina almost chocked on her biscuit, and she coughed for a while before gaping at Rai, her gypsy friend. "What are you talking about!"

"I said get over him! It's not healthy to starve yourself just because you miss some jerk." The gypsy said, crossing her arms stubbornly.

"Rai…" Mina said with a weak smile as she pointed to the biscuit in her hand. "I'm eating right now."

Yes, it had been a year since Mina had seen _that guy._

"So, why are you so down?" Rai asked curiously.

With a shrug, Mina ate up the rest of her biscuit before answering Rai. She seemed to think about it for a while before saying, "I don't know, I just don't feel too well this morning."

The door opened, and a tired-looking Maki came in. Sighing, it was as if he was dragging himself inside the room as he greeted his friends.

"Morning sickness?" Rai blinked curiously. Mina stared at her. "You're not pregnant, are you?"

But of course, some things never changed. Rai was still as loud as ever.

"How can she be pregnant? She hasn't seen Cain for about a year now." Maki stated as he entered his room, his voice muffled but understandable in the last few words.

"S-stop it!" Mina exclaimed, her face red. "You don't need to connect everything to him!"

"But, if the topic is being pregnant, who else can we connect it to?" Rai asked as she tilted her head in question.

Silence.

"Don't worry, Mina…" Rai said softly, accompanied with a huge grin. "I miss Seth, too."

"Ah." Mina replied.

Pointing her finger to her head to gesture that she was thinking of something, Rai added, "But come to think of it, at least Seth writes. You've had no contact with Cain ever since, right?"

Mina smiled sheepishly in return.

"_Behave, you three!" Seth said enthusiastically as he waved at Rai, Mina and Maki. Rai pouted, crossing her arms. She was obviously upset that Seth had to leave, and for a very indefinite period of time. "Rai, especially you."_

"_Shut up!" Rai yelled with an expression that seemed like she wanted to hit her boyfriend on the head. "You behave! If I find out you touch even just some other girl, I swear I'm going to haunt you down!"_

_As a last action, Rai stomped her foot and turned around for effect. Beside her, Mina chuckled at her antiques. Mina gingerly stole a glance at Cain who was beside Seth and silently staring at the ground. It had only been a couple of days before when they announced they had to leave to take care of some business._

_Nobody knew what business it was, except for them. They had been acting weirdly ever since a letter had come, and only the two of them read it. This made Rai even more upset, as she really wanted to know just what was so important that it caused them to leave. Cain had become so upset when he read it, and he hadn't even talked to Mina ever since._

_Even as they walked away, Cain didn't bid goodbye to Mina. It was as if nothing even happened between them. And even though Mina wouldn't admit it, she was obviously hurt inside._

"_Mina is obviously hurt inside." Rai stated._

_There, someone else admitted it for her._

"Something really strange is going on." Maki said as he walked out of his room. He took a seat beside Rai, and for a moment observed Mina who was staring back at him in question. Rai was correct; Mina did look extremely weak. "It was so gloomy at the castle, though nobody would tell me what's going on. Apparently, something really top-secret happened."

"Hey, maybe Axis's uncle finally got assassinated!" Rai said with a huge grin. "Isn't that what that girl… Crimson, was it? Wasn't that what she was planning to do before?"

"Scarlet. Her name's Scarlet." Maki corrected. "Unfortunately, he's still around. That girl never got around to doing it."

…………

A week had passed, and Mina was still in the same state. She wasn't getting any worse, but neither was she getting any better. Rai and Maki were starting to get worried; yet she wouldn't let them take her to a doctor. "I'm a High Priestess," Mina explained. "If there's anything wrong with my body, I should be able to take care of it myself."

She didn't even listen to her friends when she stated she didn't have any external wounds.

A knock came to Maki's door, and the paladin answered it himself. As soon as Maki opened it, he was surprised to see Axis standing there with an ominous expression. Axis was the prince of Prontera—he had no ties with the current King, but since the King had no off springs (except Mina, whose identity was hidden), Axis was dubbed as the next King.

"I-Is Mina here?" Axis asked with a stammer.

"She's resting, I think." Maki replied with a confused look as he let Axis in. "What's wrong?"

"The King passed away." Axis said softly.

The paladin's eyes widened in surprise, and it took him awhile to be able to respond. Finally, he said, "What? When? How?"

"His condition worsened a lot, about a week ago… and well, this morning, he passed away." Axis replied, as he uncomfortably adjusted the sleeves to his High Priest uniform. It seemed like he was having a lot of trouble in saying what he needed to tell Maki. "And the worse thing is…"

Axis paused for a while.

"He committed suicide."

Maki looked startled. He stared as Axis rummaged through his pocket and brought out an envelope, fastened with the King's seal.

"For Mina…"

Shaking, the Paladin took it from him.

The serious aura was suddenly broken when Rai kicked the door open and came into the room, yelling. She glanced at Axis and Maki, and said in a very loud voice, "What's wrong with you guys! You're acting as if someone died!"

Axis smiled sheepishly in reply, and Maki buried his face in his hands in exasperation.

"Come here, you dolt, and keep your voice down!" Maki hissed. Rolling her eyes, Mina plopped down beside him.

"What's up?" Rai said with a grin.

"Mina's father passed away." Axis whispered.

"W-what!" Said a voice that wasn't Rai's. Axis, Maki and Rai all turned around to see Mina standing by her room, her hands gripping the frame of her door in shock.

"Crap." Maki mumbled under his breath. Rai tilted her head; it wasn't usual to hear Maki curse. He seemed to only do it when he lost his composure.

"M-Mina!" Axis stood up abruptly. "S-sorry!"

"Mina, it's alright!" Rai said quickly as she stood up and waved her hands. "We're right here for you!"

She stared for a while. That was all she could do—stare. Mina didn't even cry, even her lips weren't trembling. She was frozen in place and couldn't find the words to say.

"Mina?" Rai slowly walked over to her friend and stared at her eyes. "It's alright."

The High Priestess snapped out of her reverie and quickly shook her head. "I know… I'm alright! Don't worry."

Rai looked at her curiously. "Right…"

"I don't even know him." Mina said with a huge smile. "I'm about just as upset as you guys, so you might as well fuss over yourselves. R-right?"

"Right…" Rai repeated.

"Mina," Maki said as he approached her, handing her the envelope. "Axis said this was from the king."

Mina stared at it, then at Axis who was staring back at her. Then she went back to staring at the envelope.

"Take it?" Maki suggested.

"I…" Mina whispered. "I will…"

Silence.

"Mina, why don't you take it?" Rai asked curiously, playfully prodding her friend on the shoulder. "Just reach out and take it."

The High Priestess nodded weakly.

Suddenly, her knees suddenly gave in and she grasped the ground with her frail hands. Rai looked at her, startled, as she leaned down and intentionally covered her face with her golden blonde hair. Mina was sobbing as he shoulders trembled. After a few moments, Rai leaned down and started sobbing too as she hugged her friend around the shoulders.

"It's alright, Mina…" Rai sobbed, contradicting her statement. Mina forced herself to nod as the gypsy tightened her grip around her. Maki looked upset as Rai took the envelope from him and tucked it inside Mina's pocket. Maki walked over to Axis who was heading for the door.

"Thanks, Axis…" Maki said, forcing a smile. The prince nodded as he stepped out the door. Before he closed it behind him, he glanced at Maki.

"You know, when Mina didn't accept my feelings before, I thought that was the only time she could hurt me that badly." Axis said softly, making sure the girls inside wouldn't hear him.

"But she didn't mean that." Maki replied.

"Yes, of course she didn't mean it." The High Priest replied as he turned his back and buried his face in his hand. "But I thought that was as much pain I could get from her, and it hurt even more that she was so nice about it, that I couldn't possibly hate her for it."

Maki nodded—he knew perfectly well what Axis was talking about.

"But when you hear her sobbing like that…" Axis replied as he stared at Maki. "It hurts even more, doesn't it? It makes me feel so selfish. The way she cries, it's sounds like a little kid. And I can't help but feel really sorry for her."

The paladin nodded. "Uh huh."

Axis nodded and summoned a warp hole, which he quickly stepped into. Sighing, Maki entered his house again to find Rai sitting on the couch, staring at the floor. It seemed that Mina had retreated herself to her room while he was outside.

"How terrible." Rai wiped a few tears away from her eyes. Maki nodded—Rai was a very strong girl, and the way she could be lively and impulsive was what made her strong. Even though Rai and Mina were complete opposites, one thing was for certain—they were two people who rarely showed they were sad, and seeing them that way meant something really terrible was up. "Terrible, terrible! And to think I came over with good news… Geez, and to find out _this_ was the reason."

"What?" Maki inquired.

The gypsy pouted at him and waved some parchment of paper. "I found out from Seth that they're arriving in a week, because Cain wants to see Mina. I'm not supposed to tell her, though, because Seth wasn't even supposed to tell me. But geez, I want to tell Mina so badly now!"

…………

Word spread fast in Prontera and the rest of the cities, and just like when Mina's brother, the original prince, died, lots of people came for the funeral. The only difference was that the late King was a good man, and they went out of gratitude rather than respect.

Mina heard a lot of stories about her father, and how he didn't use to be that good a man. Something had changed his attitude towards life that made him embrace it, and even the way he ruled became a lot better.

There were a lot of stories about the late king indeed, but Mina stood there in her father's funeral without knowing him at all. She had just met him once, of course. The High Priestess stood in the back with her friends, and it was starting to get late. Axis smiled at her from his place on the podium, where he stood beside the coffin as the King's adopted son.

"Oh, this means Axis will be a king soon, right?" Rai asked Maki curiously. "He's so young!"

Maki shrugged as he looked up at the night sky. "It's getting dark." People were already starting to leave, but Mina didn't seem to want to budge. Soon enough, the crowd slowly dispersed. Mina turned around, just about to tell her friends that they could go home now, but instead, her eyes widened.

Rai and Maki stared at Mina in question, and she quickly pointed behind them. Blinking, the two of them turned around.

"Oh!" Rai exclaimed with a huge smile on her face. "Seth!"

"Aww, I wanted to surprise you!" Seth said stubbornly, crossing his arms. Mina smiled at him—he didn't look any different, aside from the little facts like his hair was a bit longer now, though. "Mina, you grew your hair back to the way it was. Great!"

Mina smiled sheepishly, a bright red creeping up to her cheeks. "A-ah…"

"I missed you, you stupid dolt!" Rai exclaimed, hugging Seth. Seth laughed loudly and played with her hair gently. "You'd better not touched any other girl like I warned you not to!"

"Of course not." Seth grinned, giving Rai a quick kiss on the cheek. "They don't match up to you, anyway. Waste of time, if you'd ask me."

Maki looked around. "Where's the other one?"

Seth blinked. "Cain?"

The paladin nodded.

"He's shy. He made an excuse since he was too embarrassed to see Mina." Seth replied.

"Shut up." Cain's voice growled. All of them glanced at him as he walked over. He, too, hadn't changed a bit. "You got here before me because you were in such a hurry to see Rai."

"Of course!" Rai laughed, hugging Seth again. Seth gave her a wink.

Maki blinked and looked at Mina, who was smiling brightly at Cain and Seth. He found it so weird that even though everyone knew there was something between her and Cain when he left, they neither said goodbye or hello to each other. And to his knowledge, they didn't even keep in contact.

"You don't look too good." Cain stated, pointing at Mina. With another sheepish smile, the high priestess nodded in reply.

"Maki, Seth, let's go get a drink!" Rai said gleefully, jumping up and down. Mina's eyes widened and shot Rai a 'What about me?' look. Rai ignored Mina and grabbed Maki and Seth's wrists, dragging them away.

"Well, she hasn't changed a bit." Cain grumbled under his breath as he stared at the darkening sky. Mina chuckled in reply.

…………

Maki had a 'Why am I here?' look as he sipped from his glass. He felt like a third wheel while Rai latched herself on Seth and the three of them sat together with drinks. He wanted to leave the two of them alone, but Rai insisted that he stayed.

"Cain's right, Mina doesn't look too good." Seth blinked.

"It's a weird thing of hers." Rai replied. Maki nodded in approval to what Rai said. "When her mom died, she also became really weak right before she found out."

"Oh… I heard about that, how certain people can feel it when something terrible happens to a relative." Seth replied. "Come to think of it, that day we met her, she also didn't look too well."

Rai and Maki nodded, even though they didn't know what he was talking about. Seth meant that when Cain and he met the High Priestess, it was right after they assassinated her brother.

…………

"What do you mean you haven't approached the coffin?"

Mina blinked. She replied gingerly, "I mean… I haven't approached the coffin. I meant what I meant."

Crossly, Cain looked at her. "Why?"

The High Priestess shrugged. "Who knows?"

Exasperated, Cain grabbed her by the sleeve and started dragging her towards the podium. Several people turned around as they heard Mina's protests, but didn't they didn't seem to complain as they saw the angry look on Cain's face.

As soon as they approached the podium, Cain let go of Mina a good distance away from the coffin. Axis looked up and looked startled as he saw Cain. He quickly stood up and walked over to them.

"Hey!" Axis said quickly to Cain. As a reply, Cain simply looked away. "Well, you haven't changed a bit."

There was a defining silence as Axis looked at Mina who was staring at the coffin, though she couldn't see her father from the place she was standing.

Finally, Axis said, "Do you want me to accompany you, Mina? It's alright to be scared."

"Shut up." Cain snapped.

Mina shook her head quickly and walked over to the coffin, looking at the body of her father inside. Cain and Axis stood in silence as they watched Mina clamp a hand over her mouth, yet she didn't cry. She did a sign of the cross and afterwards walked back to Axis and Cain.

"Have you read the letter, Mina?" Axis asked curiously. Mina shook her head, and Axis nodded in reply. "I understand." He said. "Well, I'll see you guys around. Take care."

"Bye, Axis." Mina replied with a fake bright smile.

"Man, you hurt me so much." Axis said under his voice. Mina blinked in confusion but didn't reply as she noticed Cain walking away, and she ran to catch up with him.

The two of them walked in silence for a while, and they found their selves in the relaxing fountain of Prontera. It was already dark now, and there weren't any people around anymore.

"What letter was he talking about?" Cain asked suddenly.

Looking up, Mina stared at him. She stammered, "T-that… Uh, the King gave me a l-letter."

"Why haven't you read it?" Cain blinked.

"Well, because…" Mina stared at her shoes. "I'm scared."

Shrugging, Cain nodded. He blinked as Mina suddenly grasped his shirt tightly, and he faced her in question. "What?"

"Is it okay if you read it for me?"

Cain shrugged again, and Mina and him took a seat on a nearby bench. He watched as her trembling hands rummaged for the letter, and she handed it to him, still sealed. Cain opened it and glanced at Mina who was grasping the sides of the bench tightly.

"'_Dear Mina…'" _Cain started. _"'By the time you read this, I'll probably be gone. I can't even move right now, all I can do is speak. I'm asking a friend to write this for me, and afterwards I'll ask Axis to give it to you. I apologize for not seeing you more often, but I didn't want you to see your father in such a state.'"_

Pausing, Cain stared at Mina who looked up at him curiously. He couldn't read her expression.

He continued, _"'I want to tell you so much, and one of this is that I'm so sorry. I'm sorry I wasn't there for you. Your mother didn't want you to grow up in royalty, and she was so upset when she saw that blue star on your shoulder that was put against my consent. I'm sorry you never even got to hang out with your brother like siblings were supposed to.' _" Cain blinked and he added as his opinion. "Great thing too, I hated that guy."

"Cain!" Mina replied, pinching his shoulder. She knew it was him who had murdered her brother, but she also knew he had his reasons and she never held a grudge against it. "Continue!"

"'_I'm sorry you never got to hang out with me like a real father and daughter, but I would do anything to make your mother happy. Did you know, by the way, that you're so alike to your mother?"_

Mina tilted her head. "But I look nothing like her. My features are from his side of the family."

Cain continued, _"'I bet you're wondering how I can say that when you look nothing like her. I meant that you're one of those rare people, and even though I only met you once, I knew you were just like your mother. I changed right after I met her. Believe it or not, it's possible for someone so horrible to actually want to change after he falls in love with a woman like that.'"_

"I don't get what he means." Mina frowned.

Rolling his eyes, Cain replied, "You can't be serious."

"I mean it! Changing just because of a girl? Isn't that a bit too surreal?"

Cain raised his eyebrows in reply. "You're so stupid."

Mina shrugged. "Continue, continue!"

"'_They said it was a scandal and a mistake that you were born, but I hope you never thought of your existence that way. I love you for every bit of who you are, and I hope you take care of yourself. I'm really going to miss you. That's all I can really tell you, since even though I said a lot here, all I wanted to say was that I love you so much.'" _Cain sighed as he turned to the next page. "_PS: I really wanted to know you more. Sometimes I send Axis here just to hear stories about you. He said that a lot of guys fall for you, and he was even one of them. Yet…"_

Cain paused, and Mina looked at him crossly.

"What, Cain!" Mina exclaimed.

"I don't want to read this." Cain replied.

The High Priestess sighed and reached out for it, but Cain shoved it towards the other direction. They seemed to wrestle for it for a bit, but of course, Mina was no match for Cain.

"Cain!" Mina said.

"Read it yourself." Cain replied, finally shoving it towards her. Mina grabbed it from him and stuck her tongue out at him.

Cain rolled his eyes in exasperation as Mina's cheeks went bright red, and she fumbled while she folded the letter back into the envelope and tucked it back in her pocket.

There was silence. Mina smiled at Cain and said, "I wonder how it would've been like to hang out with my dad?"

Cain shrugged in reply. "He seemed like a good man."

"Yes, I bet he was." Mina nodded. "I didn't really know him, since I just met him once. I saw him a lot before, but I didn't really think much of it since I didn't know."

"Ah."

"It's so embarrassing, since he's like a stranger to me." Mina chuckled. "And I ended up breaking down in front of Rai, Maki and Axis. I even made Rai cry, because I was so upset… You should've seen it, it was a rare sight."

"Rai cried?" Cain blinked.

Mina nodded. "Yeah, it's so rare to see her sad."

"Like you." Cain shrugged.

Chuckling, Mina leaned her head on his shoulder lightly. He stared at her golden blonde hair—she had grown it back, just like he hoped.

"Hey, Cain." Mina whispered. "You didn't meet any other girls like Rai warned Seth, did you?"

"Hell, no." Cain growled.

Mina chuckled and hugged Cain around the neck and shyly kissed him on the lips. Cain shivered slightly and froze under her touch.

"Man, I missed you." Cain said in a low whisper.

"It's because you didn't say goodbye to me, idiot."

…………

_PS: I really wanted to know you more. Sometimes I send Axis here just to hear stories about you. He said that a lot of guys fall for you, and he was even one of them. Yet you chose some guy named Cain. According to Axis, he's quite the rude man, but he seems different when around you. That sounds just like me when I met your mother. I hope this Cain never hurts you, or I will personally haunt him._

_And who knows, maybe someday, you two will also have a daughter like I had you._

_**To Be Continued**_

_**A/N:**_

That was so much fun. –sniff-… since some people requested that I made a sequel, here you go. Besides, this is my favorite writing, since it's FUUUN (like I said before).

It'll probably be shorter than before, though.

I can't believe I made such a drama chapter. --


	2. Family Heirlooms

_**Second Glance: Untold Stories **_

**Chapter Two: Family Heirlooms**

Memory—just what is it? It's regarded differently by different kinds of people. To some, it's something useless and it just comes with the fact that you're alive, and they regard it as nothing more than pictures and voices that brought them to what and who they are. Others treasure memory, since it's the only thing that can't be taken from them.

They're wrong.

"There's a girl outside!" Rai screamed, pointing out of the window. Maki looked up, blinking. There was a storm outside, and nobody in his or her right mind would even think of going out at a time like this. The noisy banging of things against Maki's house annoyed him to no end, and he was in no mood for Rai's jokes. Rai looked at him, flabbergasted that he didn't seem to believe her discovery. "Its true, you dolt!"

Maki, with an air that lacked conviction, stood up and walked towards the window. He peered outside, and found out that Rai was correct. The gypsy crossed her arms and looked at him in a 'I told you so' expression. Maki rolled his eyes and stormed out, with Rai staring at his back, wide-eyed. Not that it was a surprise—Maki was someone who wouldn't miss an opportunity of helping out someone, even if it were in the middle of a lethal storm. All right, so maybe the 'lethal' part was exaggerated.

Approaching the young woman who was passed out in the streets; he gathered her up in his arms. He stared at her briefly, thinking that she looked familiar. Her face was bleeding and she was garbed in a sage's uniform, a worn-down and drenched cloak wrapping her petite form. Maki raced back to his house, Rai shutting the door behind him.

"What happened, why's she passed out?" Rai asked quickly as Maki lay her down on his sofa. "Ack, and Mina isn't even here! That stupid girl, of all the times to go out with that stoic Cain."

"We don't need Mina for everything, Rai. She isn't a God." Maki told her as he rushed to get a couple of white potions from a cabinet. Rai eyed him deeply, but didn't argue. She knew that Maki was desperately in love with Mina and depended on her for almost _everything_. Just what was going on in his mind that would amount to a comment like that?

"Is she okay?" Rai asked as Maki handed her the white potions with a bright blush. The gypsy stifled a giggle. Her friend was too much a gentleman to rub potions on a scantily clad girl… and look at her body! Rai pouted—it wasn't everyday that she found another girl with a body that rivaled hers. It just made her upset.

"She looks like Scarlet." Maki finally said what was on his mind. Scarlet was the assassin cross that used to be Cain and Seth's guild mates. He had met her a couple of times before, and none of these occasions were pleasant. The girl who was unconscious before them did look like her, aside from the more peaceful face and the shorter hair, and also the different sent of uniforms.

"Who's Scarlet?" Rai asked.

"She's… uh, someone." Maki replied. The gypsy sighed and stared at Maki's downcast face. He was being stranger than usual.

"Hey, is something bothering you?" Rai finally asked, arms on her hips and staring at him strictly.

"Huh? No. No way." Maki replied. He hated the rain, it always made him upset. Certain painful flashbacks from his childhood always haunted him every time it rained. Also, he was pretty tired, because Axis's uncle had been assassinated by an unknown figure—finally—and that had lead to a lot of work in the castle.

Maki was shot out of his reverie when Rai gave a low shriek. The sage started stirring in her sleep, and her eyes slowly opened, revealing eyes that reminded Maki of that certain person he had mentioned before—Scarlet.

Rai and Maki stood there in silence as the girl, surprised, abruptly sat up straight. She looked utterly confused as she looked around, her eyes wide.

"What's your name?" Rai asked curiously.

The girl didn't seem like she was going to reply right away, but since it seemed like she had no choice, she opened her mouth to talk.

Silence.

"I don't know." The sage replied.

"What!" Rai screamed, hands on her hips and towering the sage with her small stature. "How can you not know your own name? Don't frigging kid with me."

Obviously taken aback, the sage cowered her face behind frail hands. She was shaking and Maki had to pull Rai back while rolling his eyes.

"Well, her name's Violet, judging from the tattoo on her wrist." Maki pointed out. Rai and 'Violet' blinked as Violet stared down at her wrist. Maki was right—there it was, a simple tattoo of what seemed to be her name. "Can't you remember anything, Violet?"

The sage shook her head.

"Amnesia…?" Rai and Maki said in unison, staring at each other.

"But she can talk, can't she? She knows how to move. She just forgot who she is." Rai stated as she started to walk around the room in a fast pace.

"Scarlet…" Maki mumbled under his breath. Violet blinked and looked up at Maki, as if intrigued by the name.

"Okay, quit saying that name if you're not going to put light on the situation!" Rai yelled in frustration.

Maki looked annoyed now, but he could guess that it wasn't Rai's fault this time that she was being so snappy.

"Scarlet is an assassin cross who used to work with Seth and Cain, but I'm not sure if she's still in that barbaric guild." Maki explained with evident annoyance. "And she looks exactly like Violet. Even their names are similar."

Maki looked back at Violet, his eyes still annoyed because of his conversation with Rai. Violet flinched a bit, as if frightened from Maki's intimidating stare. Maki, noticing this, flushed almost instantly and looked back at Rai, who had her arms crossed.

Suddenly, Rai snapped again. "Get her some dry clothes, damn it!"

"Gah!" Maki put up his hands in defeat and marched off to his room, searching his cabinet for whatever clothing that he could lend Violet. Back in the main room, Rai sat down beside Violet and peered right into her eyes.

"Is he angry at me?" Violet asked, blinking. She couldn't forget that menacing stare he had.

"No." Rai replied bluntly. "He's just bitter because it's raining."

Maki came back with a bunch of folded clothing in his arms, which he handed to Violet. Violet took them while forcing a smile at him.

'Great.' Maki thought sarcastically, while rolling his eyes. 'A body like Scarlet's with a personality like Mina's. Just great.'

What's so great about that, you ask?

It was the perfect combination… according to Maki, anyway.

…………………………………………………………

"What's this?" Mina asked softly while holding a gold pendant in her hand. In either side of her, Cain and Seth stood, peering at the exquisite ornament. The rain was pounding in the background, and they were all talking in loud voices.

A face Mina hadn't seen in a fairly long time stood ahead of them. She looked so tired but so determined to get everything done. "It's a family heirloom." Scarlet replied, her lips trembling a bit. "Do you promise you'll take care of her?"

Mina looked to Cain and Seth, confused. Just what was going on? Why had the two of them asked for assistance to a desolate alley in Al De Baran, and why was Scarlet handing her a gold pendant?

"We promise!" Seth said with a huge grin. As if on cue, he grabbed Mina around the neck and hugged her tightly, a sign of brotherly affection.

Cain thought otherwise. He gave Seth death glares.

And for the first time Mina could remember, Scarlet smiled at them and cloaked herself into invisibility.

"Let's head back now." Seth whispered, his tone serious. Mina nodded and tucked the pendant in her pocket. Questions were not to be asked, she understood. She summoned a portal and they stepped in.

And reappeared in a… dungeon?

"Mina, what's this!" Seth bellowed, his eyes wide with amusement. "I can't believe it, you finally made your first mistake!"

Mina looked like she was in panic and looked around quickly. "I've never been to this place before!" She rummaged through her pockets and brought out another blue gemstone, emitting another portal.

And they reappeared in the lowest level of Byalan.

"What!" Mina shrieked. She looked over at Cain who looked a bit annoyed as he slashed through a stray merman. On her other side, Seth was finding this even more amusing by the minute. "Cain, what's going on? How come my portals are going all wrong?"

"Pendant. Then try again." Cain said simply, stretching out his palm. Blinking, Mina gave it to him.

And on her third try, they reappeared in the entrance of Prontera.

"Finally!" Seth said, grinning. It was raining in Prontera too, and they all ran for shade. The rain was so strong that Mina almost swore she would be blown away if she didn't hang on to Cain.

"Cain, does that pendant have a curse?" Mina inquired as they sat down on some blocks of wood to rest.

"I suppose." Cain replied. He examined the engraving on it. "I think Scarlet came from a family of mages, and this is a heirloom that mixes up magic."

Mina nodded. She didn't know that.

"You're wondering, aren't you?" Seth said with a grin. "We're going this for you."

Mina ignored the sudden glare Cain gave Seth and inquired more—"For me? What?"

"Everyone in that assassin guild has a horrible past, and once you try to go against the guild, Cain's dad—the guild master, will take it against everything valuable that you hold. In Scarlet's case, her twin sister." Seth explained with a smile.

"Scarlet has a twin?" Mina said, interested by that fact.

"Yeah. Once Scarlet didn't kill you, Cain's dad started distrusting her. Even though she killed Axis's uncle, it still wasn't enough, so he tried proving her loyalty by attacking Scarlet's sister. When this happened, Scarlet left the guild completely… now we're in charge of taking care of Scarlet's twin, since we owe it to her."

Mina nodded. That was a lot of information to try to understand in less than a minute, and it didn't help that the rain was confusing her hearing.

…………………………………………………………

"You're Scarl—"

Seth, from behind Violet, waved his hands furiously, signaling to her stop. Mina blinked and stopped talking anyway, and she wondered why Violet was staring at her with so much confusion.

"Violet has amnesia." Rai said as she walked by. She marched up to Seth and slapped him smack across the face. "That's for not telling me where you went."

"Aw, c'mon, I was only out to get you a gift!" Seth insisted. Mina wondered why they wouldn't tell Rai the truth, but Maki didn't know either, so she didn't think much about it.

"Gift?" Rai inquired.

Suddenly, Seth grabbed Cain's shoulder and pulled him over, ignoring his protests.

"You can't give me Cain." Rai stated with her eyebrows arched. "He's already Mina's."

Seth laughed and ducked as Cain tried to punch him. In a quick movement, he grabbed the pendant from his pocket. "This is my gift for—"

And in an instant, he was sent plummeting towards the ground, courtesy of Cain's fist. Cain rolled his eyes and put the pendant back in his pocket as Seth laughed loudly.

"I know that pendant…" Violet said softly, tugging unto Maki's sleeve. Maki blinked at her, then looked at Cain.

"Where's it from?" Maki inquired.

"It's Mina's. I'm holding it for her." Cain replied, bluntly but perfectly final. Mina stared at Cain, knowing fully that sometimes lying was just his way of protecting somebody. She couldn't understand why he would protect Violet, since it seemed highly unlike him, but maybe there was a deeper reason behind all this.

"Anyway, I'm heading to sleep." Rai said with a yawn. She almost slapped Seth again as he tried to follow her to the room, but instead, she slammed the door in his face.

Seth looked at everybody else with a pout. "What did I do?"

"Nothing." Maki shrugged. "I think I pissed her off."

Without saying anything, Seth sighed and went off to the kitchen. Cain went on his way to the guest room, not waiting for Mina, who stayed behind.

Mina looked at Maki and Violet, who were silently sitting beside each other on the couch. Violet was stealing glances at Maki, and Maki seemed oblivious to this, as he stared out the window. The rain was still pelting down on the glass.

"Nice to meet you." Mina said radiantly at Violet, who gave her the exact response. A smile so bright it made Maki glance at her.

"Is something wrong?" Violet asked. Mina looked at Maki too, with the same confused expression.

'I'm so screwed.' Were the last thoughts that went through Maki's mind. It was bad enough he had met Mina and had his heart wrenched into two… now, Violet came, and it seemed like she was exactly like the other.

_**To Be Continued**_

_**A/N: **_AHHHHHHH I CAN'T BELIEVE I UPDATED TWO FICS IN ONE DAY. LOL.


	3. Another Goodbye

_**Second Glance: Untold Stories **_

**Chapter Three: Another Goodbye**

There were a lot of mysteries that revolved around the land of Prontera. Today was the day that the prince's coronation as a king. A month ago, the original king had committed suicide by apparently drinking poison. Nobody knew the reason, especially since he was already very ill and near death anyway. A week later, the man who ordered Axis around, his uncle, had been assassinated.

In the more private lives of the city's citizens, mysterious things were also happening. A week after Axis's uncle was killed, a girl showed up at the front of a certain paladin's house. Her name was Violet. Only three people in the house knew who she was, and these were Cain, Seth and Mina. The other two people, Maki and Rai, were clueless. Violet had forgotten her past but quickly regained her composure. As the days passed, they found out that she wasn't as frail as they had thought when they first met her.

Maki stared around his house. At the dinner table, Mina was setting the table while speaking to Cain, who was feeding a smokie. Rai, Violet and Seth were on the couch, talking cheerfully. Only one word crossed Maki's mind.

_Freeloaders._

Mina blinked as the smokie suddenly jumped up to the table and started munching on a napkin. Behind her, Cain growled in annoyance. He had just fed his pet but it was still hungry, and he swore that it was getting chubbier, no matter what he did.

"So, after lunch, let's head straight to the plaza for the King's coronation." Rai concluded, crossing her legs in the process.

"The king's name… is Axis, right?" Violet inquired with a smile.

"Yes." Rai replied. "He's the one who got turned down by Mina."

Mina rolled her eyes and ignored Rai, not really in the mood to try to get her to keep quiet. She was thinking like this more often now, knowing full well that it took the energy of one platoon to shut Rai up.

"Oh my!" Violet said with huge grin, looking at Mina cheerfully. "Lots of guys really do like you, huh? That sounds really nice."

"Rai's lying." Was Mina's simple reply as she retreated back to the kitchen to fetch more utensils. The smokie followed behind. Rai shook her head dramatically at Mina.

"I'm hungry…" Maki grumbled under his breath as he sat down on the table and watched Mina put the food down. The food looked delicious today, he realized. "Hey, did Rai cook these?" He asked curiously. It was usually the gypsy who cooked since Mina was no good at it.

"I cooked." Violet said cheerfully as she stood up and took a seat beside Maki. She looked at him with a huge smile as he put some food on his plate.

Her gaze on him was so intent that it made him smile back at her sheepishly. "What's wrong?"

"It's the first time I cooked." Violet said, as she seemed to be waiting for him to taste the food. "Tell me if it's good!"

"I don't think it's her first time. She must've been a cook or something before she lost her memory, because even though she made me teach her, she pretty much did it herself." Rai stated. "Mina just watched from the background."

Violet nodded to everything Rai said, not really paying attention. Maki looked so uncomfortable and Seth laughed loudly, and he said, "Just take a bite and maybe she'll leave you alone!"

"Yeah, he's right." Violet nodded.

Sheepishly, Maki took a bite and gulped it down. He was going red, as he wasn't used to being watched that way. He looked at Violet and scratched the back of his neck. "Uh. It's delicious."

"Yes!" Violet cheered, turning away from him and getting food for herself. Maki gave a sigh of relief as if a hundred burdens had just been lifted of his back.

"Violet's gotten really attached to Maki, hasn't she?" Mina mused as she sat down beside Cain.

Rai nodded. "Uh huh. Like a little kid."

……………………………………

"He looks really good." Violet whispered to Rai while latching unto her arm like a little kid. Rai didn't seem bothered by now. Every time they brought her out the previous days she had done this. She really _did _act like a little child.

Rai and Mina nodded, looking up at whom Violet was referring to. Axis stood up straight as a couple of royal priests placed a golden crown on his head. Axis, the high priest, looked distraught but determined. The black under his eyes suggested that he hadn't slept in days.

The ritual took longer than expected, and they were all starting to get restless under the sweltering sun and in the huge crowd. Rai was already starting to pry Violet of her arm, but she just wouldn't budge.

The place was so rowdy and noisy. Violet saw somebody in the crowd that took her by surprise, and like a little kid who spots a candy man; she disappeared suddenly, following the figure. Neither Rai or Mina even noticed—Rai just thought she had finally let go of her arm, but she didn't bother making sure if she was still around.

Violet followed the figure, squeezing through hundreds of people in the process. She finally reached an empty alley and had air to breathe, but the person was no longer there. With a sigh, Violet turned around to go back to Rai.

Then she realized that she was lost. She looked around quickly, seeing only buildings and people who all looked alike. For a moment, she was scared.

Then Seth approached her, looking confused. "Violet! What are you doing here?" He asked curiously. "Where are Rai and Mina?"

Violet looked up at him. The boys and girls had separated earlier since they really weren't interested in the coronation and didn't want to squeeze closer like the girls decided.

Violet said, "I saw my doppelganger and followed it."

"Huh…?" Seth blinked.

"I read about it in a book the other day in Maki's library." Violet replied. "A doppelganger is a creature that copies your identity. I saw mine in the crowd and I followed it."

The assassin cross smiled at her sheepishly, guessing that she had probably seen Scarlet, her identical twin. Of course, because of her amnesia, Violet didn't know about Scarlet. Seth grabbed Violet's wrist and started leading her away from the crowd. He immediately asked a question to change the topic. "I didn't know you could read after getting amnesia."

"I don't know, I just can." Violet said, shrugging. "Same way I know how to talk, walk, eat…"

Seth nodded. Whatever her 'amnesia' was, all it did was erase her memory of her identity. It didn't erase her abilities to survive.

……………………………………

"Cain! Paladin!" Hissed a familiar voice. Cain, hearing his name, faced the source of the voice.

Maki, confused, turned around. 'Paladin' wasn't his name, but only one person would ever call him like that.

_Scarlet._

"You…" Maki mumbled as he stared at Scarlet as she leaned against a wall near him. She brought down the hood of her cloak with her fingers.

"She saw me." Scarlet said, addressing it more to Cain than to Maki.

"Have you found it?" Cain asked. Maki looked back and forth, annoyed that he didn't have a clue as to what was going on. Situations like this often annoyed him.

"I did." Scarlet said with a huge grin. "It's deep in Geffen tower's dungeons. But the guild's also looking for it, so we might not be able to get it ahead of them. Plus, you know.—we can die."

"Wait, wait—what?" Maki asked, more confused than ever.

"Are you coming with us, Paladin? We're leaving tomorrow morning." Scarlet told Maki.

"Huh?" Was his simple reply.

Cain looked annoyed. He looked around, and when he was sure nobody was looking, he went to a quiet spot by the city gates. Scarlet and Maki followed him.

"Here's the deal. Listen now and shut up." Cain grumbled under his breath. "The King didn't die of suicide, my father killed him with a strong poison. But the King isn't a pushover either, so he put a curse on my father that is like a time bomb awaiting death."

Maki nodded, not really used to listening to Cain talk about his 'father'. And all this information was coming too quickly, as if he wasn't ready for it at all.

"There's only one antidote for this curse. You need the pendant that's with us and a kind of rare plant that can only be found in the deepest part of Geffen tower, like Scarlet said. But if we get it first…"

"…his dad will just go boom." Scarlet grinned. "And my sister will be safe, too."

"…sister?!" Maki's eyes widened. Scarlet stared at him. "I knew it!"

"It was pretty obvious." Cain grumbled sarcastically, stating the obvious. Maki ignored his comment.

"Wait, why can't Violet remember anything?"

"Oh…" Scarlet said. "Because I gave her poison that will make her forget her identity, so she doesn't come butting in with that idiotic mind of hers and get in the way."

Maki stared at her in disbelief, surprised that she could talk about her sister that way. But in a way, he realized that she was just protecting Violet. She didn't want to involve her any further. As he stared at her, he realized… the two of them looked _so _much alike. He had always thought twins were so strange, being so alike. Their only difference was their hair and their clothes, but other than that, nothing else.

"What are you looking at?" Scarlet snapped at Maki, making him look away in annoyance.

…and of course, Violet was a lot more pleasant.

……………………………………

"You're all leaving tomorrow?" Violet asked, tilting her head. "When will you all be back?"

Seth shrugged as he intently ate more of his dinner. Beside him, Cain and Maki both had the same grim expression. "Who knows… days, weeks, never?"

"Why's this one going?" Rai asked bluntly while pointing at Maki. "He's never gone with you two before."

"I'm going to get this all over with." Maki mumbled. "Besides, they need all the help they need."

Seth nodded and looked at Cain, who wasn't saying anything. But Seth knew that even though his partner said nothing, Cain never thought Maki was weak. Maki and Cain had gotten into fights before, and their abilities had always matched each other. Besides, Maki was in charge of his own troops in the castles and even though he didn't look it, he was clever at making strategies.

Throughout dinner, Seth had told everybody the problem. At one point, he asked Violet to go out and fetch them some dessert while he told everyone what was really going on. It was only Rai who didn't know by this point, though.

He told her how they were going to look for a rare plant in the deepest dungeon of Geffen tower and how the said place was now more dangerous with their ex-guild's members in it. This plant was the only way to ensure that Cain's father would die soon, and also the pendant that Cain was currently holding.

"If they need both…" Mina started. "Then why don't you just hold the pendant, and they can't make it anyway?"

"There's more than one." Seth explained. "But it's _really _rare. We can't ensure that they'll go after this one, though. So we have to cut all their sources."

Silence. Violet came back with a huge smile plastered on her face and a cake in her hands.

"We'll probably be gone longer than you expect, because once we get it, we're not going back here right away… or else even the pretty girls will be in danger!" Seth said cheerfully. His attitude didn't lift the spirits of the room though; as Rai simply glared at him like that last time he left.

"That's what you said the last time!" Rai snapped and stomped her foot. She looked extremely cross at Seth. "You said you'd be gone indefinitely, and you were gone for a darn year! Besides, you!" Rai pointed at Cain, who finally looked up from his plate and stared at her. "How selfish can you be? The last time you left, Mina was so upset she didn't eat for months. Now you're telling me you're leaving to _murder your father?"_

"Rai, no…" Mina said weakly, trying to grab her friend's arm and stop her.

"Tsch." Cain said simply, looking the other way. He seemed to have an expression that said, 'what do _you _know about being selfish?'

"By the way. Tell them, Cain." Seth said with a huge grin that he had to rival the room's dark aura. Cain looked at him with a glare.

"I sent Cheska to come here." Cain mumbled. Cheska was his little sister who lived back in Morroc. While he said the next few lines, a deep blush came to his cheeks. Cain was always shy when he said something that suggested even a hint of care. "I want you guys to make sure she's going to be safe."

"Of course we will." Mina said with a huge smile. "I really like Cheska. And besides, I still have the mask you bought for her back in Juno."

Rai smirked. This was new. Cain cared! He even bought his little sister a gift and asked his girlfriend to take care of it. It didn't help that he never bothered sending the gift a year ago, though.

When they finished eating, the guys went outside and started whispering in hushed voices. Mina, Rai and Violet cleaned the table.

"I guess it's just going to be the three of us, then." Rai stated.

"…plus Cheska." Mina added. She looked more cheerful than she needed to be as she said this.

"I wonder why we can't go?" Violet mused innocently. Mina and Rai looked at her, the girl who couldn't even remember her own name a couple of days ago. She expected to be of help in a dangerous situation like that?

"We should figure out a way to help them, though." Rai said with a smile. She made a gesture and called for the two girl's attention. "Think, think."

"We can… we can…" Violet blinked. "I don't know, I don't really know what's going on."

And she didn't even seem to be bothered by that.

Mina stared at the plates in her hand, and she seemed to have thought of something. The door to the house opened and the Seth and Cain came in.

"Where's Maki?" Rai asked.

"Fresh air." Seth replied bluntly, his previous cheerful atmosphere gone now. "Let's head to bed, Rai."

Rai stared at him in disbelief. Seth had never ordered her around that way before. _She _did the ordering, _not him._

"Sorry." Seth sighed. "I'm just really… uh, worried, I guess."

Rai nodded solemnly and grabbed his hand, pulling him towards her room. She understood.

"I'm going to Maki…" Violet stated as she dropped the plates she was holding and placed it on the table. Mina blinked, realizing that both Violet and Rai had left her to do the rest of the chores. Violet rushed out the door without second thought.

"Cain." Mina said, blinking up at him as she gathered all the plates in her arms and walked towards the kitchen. She was relieved that Cain simply nodded and agreed to listen to her as he followed her. "I was thinking…don't you think it's a good idea to leave the pendant behind?"

"Not really."

Mina sighed and put the plates down by the counter. "If… if…"

Cain stared at her, waiting for what she was going to say. She always had a hard time speaking when she was nervous.

"If… and I know it's not going to happen." She continued, her lips trembling as she stared at the ground. "If you guys fail, they'll get both the pendant and the plant. I know it's hard for you, but… leave the pendant behind, it'll help, even just a bit."

"Mina." He replied. She blinked and looked up at him. "If we leave the pendant behind, you'll be in even more danger. And even Cheska."

Mina's eyes widened. She hadn't realized that.

"Don't you… trust us?" Cain grumbled, staring at the floor like she did.

Mina looked up at him with a bright smile. "How about you? Don't you trust _me_?"

……………………………………

"You're coming along, right?" Maki asked her. She sat on the opposite side of the fountain, her back facing his. They hadn't really been properly acquainted in the past. The first time he saw her, she was wounded.

They both shared a secret. The day, more than a year ago, Scarlet hadn't escaped. Maki had saw her wounded and hardly moving, and he took pity on her. He faced his troops who stood outside the house and told them the house was empty. Then, they all left to inspect another house.

Scarlet smirked, hugging her knees. "Of course I am."

"You'll be the only girl." Maki stated in amusement.

"Yeah, well, you'll be the only paladin."

"Uh huh."

There was silence.

"Say, you."

"What?"

"You know…" She stood up and circled the fountain to face him, her face serious. "I've been meaning to ask you. Back then, why did you let me go? In Alberta, I mean."

Maki stared at her, taken aback. He wasn't expecting a question like that, not from her. This was actually the first time the two of them were having a decent conversation.

"Well, your Thanks are a year late, I see." Maki laughed.

"Makiii!" Another voice said. It sounded like Scarlet's voice, yet a lot more cheerful.

"See you tomorrow." Scarlet said quickly as she concealed herself. Maki blinked and looked at the direction of Violet's voice as she looked around, trying to find him. Finally, she spotted him and ran over to him.

"What's wrong?" Maki asked her. After seeing Scarlet up that close, and now Violet, Maki could hardly tell them apart.

"I just thought you wanted company! Will you listen to my story?"

Maki blinked and nodded, confused at what she was saying. She quickly sat down beside him and started speaking.

"I saw my doppelganger today." She said in amusement. Maki stared at her. "She looked really sad, though. I only caught a glimpse of her face, then she disappeared in the crowd."

Maki smirked to himself and said softly, "Your doppelganger, huh…?"

"I wonder why she looked so sad…?" Violet mused. She smiled at Maki. "I have dreams about my doppelganger. She's always protecting me. I read in your books that when you see your doppelganger, it means death. But… I like mine."

The paladin chuckled. "I'm sure you do."

Violet nodded and stood up. "Let's head back and eat the rest of the cake!" She started off running towards Maki's house, not waiting for him. It was as if she was sure he'd follow anyway.

……………………………………

"Top drawer." Came Cain's voice. He sat on the bed, arms crossed and staring at the wall intently. Mina nodded and opened the said drawer. From there, she took the pendant and gingerly tucked it in her pocket.

"Thanks, Cain." Mina said. She sat down beside him and the two of them stared at the wall. "Now I'm sure you'll be back sooner."

"What do you mean?"

Mina chuckled softly. "Now that you know we're in danger, all you'll be thinking about it getting back as quick as you can. Right?"

Cain shrugged, but Mina knew she was right. He looked at her lap and saw her hands trembling.

"I hate you, Cain." Mina said softly. "I hate that you didn't say goodbye properly. I hate that you didn't even write."

The assassin cross shrugged, not really knowing what to say. He knew that she was still upset with him. Since the time they got back, the two of them didn't even speak properly. They only talked about things like that were already there, not touching the past. Mina had kissed him the day he arrived, but that was it. It was like they were both scared of something.

Mina's eyes widened as Cain suddenly put his arms around her shoulders. She snuggled her face on his warm neck.

"You promise, don't you? That you won't be gone again that long?" Mina mumbled.

"Hn." He said simply, but Mina knew that he meant he promised. She lightly kissed his neck and heard his groan. Her kisses trailed upwards, towards his chin, and he leaned down as she reached up and kissed his lips. Her arms went around his neck and pulled him towards him, and he noticed that her eyes were brimming with tears.

"Sorry." She sobbed, and she quickly pulled away and hid her face in his shirt. She felt him nod and he gently nudged her away from his chest. Cain ran his fingers through her silken hair and towards her back. She felt him fiddling with the ribbon that held her uniform together, and the laces fell apart, causing her sleeves to fall down.

"Didn't rip them this time." He whispered hoarsely and began nibbling on her bare shoulder.

Mina chuckled, remembering what had happened that last time. It had been around a year since she got this close to him, and she missed his touch.

"Turn the lights off. Idiot."

……………………………………

**A/N: **YEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEES I UPDATEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEED sorry for the typos yeah. Does anybody want to be my proofreader? HAHA.

I'm still confused. Maki should go for… Scarlet or Violet? Hmmm.


	4. A Glass Plant

_**Second Glance: Untold Stories **_

**Chapter Four: A Glass Plant**

_"Mina, look! I can defeat a fabre all my myself!" A young Rai, clad in novice uniform, pointed to the carcass of a fabre. She had a smug look on her face as she proudly showed off her price._

_"That's great, Rai!" Mina replied. She was also clad in novice uniform. The two of them were training, excited to get promoted. Mina was eager to change into an acolyte , while Rai was going to travel to Payon soon to change into an archer. _

_Rai was originally from Prontera, and Mina had travelled to Prontera with her mother recently. While Mina was training one day, the hyper Rai came over and introduced herself. Starting that moment, the two would train together._

_"I bet I can even take on those Rockers!" Rai said gleefully as she pointed to the said creature which was passing by peacefully._

_"Huh? Wait, no, Rai-"_

_Too late. Rai plumetted forward, striking the Rocker on it's side. It seemed more annoyed than hurt as it roared with anger. Rai stepped back, realizing the mistake she did._

_"Aaah!" Mina screamed out in panic as Rai ran around, the rocker behind her. "That's why I told you not to!"_

_"Liar!" Her friend screamed as she ran past. "You just tried to say it, but it never came out!"_

_Mina blinked. Was this really the time to be talking about such technical matters?_

_Suddenly, Rai tripped and the Rocker was just a few seconds away from hitting her. Mina shut her eyes, but just when she did, she heard the sound of blade slicing through Rocker skin. When she opened her eyes, a young swordsman stood over Rai, looking irritated._

_"Quit getting yourself into trouble!" He yelled, as he tucked his sword back on his belt. Rai looked up at him cheerfully_

_"Maki! You're back!" Rai said with a huge grin. "And it's fine, I knew you'd come! You always did!"_

_"S-shut up!" The swordsman said in an embarassed way as Rai suddenly latched herself on him. He tried to pry her off to no avail. Nearby, Mina stared with curiosity until Rai finally realized that she was still there._

_"This is Mina! I met her the other day!" Rai said, pointing to the said girl. "Mina, this is the idiot I was talking about!"_

_"Oh..." Mina said with a sheepish grin as she held out her hand. "Nice to meet you."_

_Maki blinked, staring at Mina intently with a curious expression. "Uh... s-same." And he shook her hand._

_"Oooo, Maki's bluuushing!" Rai snickered._

_Mina blinked and peered at Maki's face, realizing that Rai was right. "You alright? You look like you have a fever! You should get some rest."_

"Paladin! Paladin!"

"Nnnrgh..." Maki's voice shook as a hand rougly swatted his shoulder. He was still sleepy, and it was still dark. Oh, nope, wrong. The sun was already out, but the annoying thing swatting his shoulder was starting to annoy him. "Stop it, Rai!" And he held out a hand and gripped the offending hand tightly.

"Rai...? Who do you think--" A voice that wasn't Rai's said, irritated. "Let go of me!"

Maki opened his eyes and was surprised to see that he was actually holding Scarlet's hand. She stared at him in annoyance, and he let go of her quickly. The Paladin looked around. Seth was staring at him closeby with an amused look on his face, and Cain stood beside Seth, looking at Maki with that usual indifference. He realized that they had camped out in the woods on their way to Geffen, saying that taking the Kafra was too dangerous. Unfortunately, Mina had also lost her portal to Geffen when she put her mark on Juno on their last visit there.

"I didn't think you were a heavy sleeper, Maki!" Seth said cheerfully.

"I'm just tired." Maki said as he stood up. "Sorry."

"No time for apologies." Scarlet said quickly. "Let's get moving." Then she turned around and started off. As she passed by Cain, he also made a move and walked behind her. Maki gave a sigh and rubbed his eyes, gathering his things in his hand and making a move to follow after him.

"I hate that person. Nowhere near as cute as her sister." Maki grumbled as he paced himself behind Seth, who in turn, laughed softly.

……………………………………

"Man, you look exactly like your brother!" Rai said with excitement as she stared at Cheska, who was cradling a Smokie in her arms and was seated on the couch. She had arrived that day, just like Cain had instructed. Even she didn't know why she had to go there, but apparently, Cain said it was to protect her. "You're not as grouchy as he is, are you?"

Cheska shook her head furiously. "No way!"

The gypsy laughed. "You're so damn cute! We're _so_ going to get along!"

Mina smiled sheepishly. Rai and Cheska becoming bestfriends seemed like something Cain would detest.

"H-hey!" Cheska called out, pointing at Violet who was trying to balance about a dozen plates in her hand. "Be careful!"

"But I need to get ready!" The sage replied.

"For...what, exactly?" Rai asked curiously.

"For tonight!" The sage looked at all of them as if they were so dumb they didn't know. "We have guests!"

They all stared at her weirdly. "Hah?"

……………………………………

"S-so..." Scarlet whispered. She had slowed down her pace to walk beside Maki, who looked at her, confused. When Seth saw this, he in turn hurried up to walk beside Cain. "How's my sister?"

"She's kinda strange." Maki replied. "Is she really that childish and absent-minded?"

The Paladin smiled to himself as he noticed a content grin appear on Scarlet's face, but she hid it almost instantly. "Yeah, she has always been like that."

They walked in silence for a while. Finally, Maki spoke up. "Can I ask you something?"

"Uh, okay?" Scarlet blinked at him, awaiting his answer.

"I heard you were from a family of magicians. How come you're an assassin cross?" He said it quickly, almost bluntly, as if he was scared that if he didn't, he wouldn't be able to ask it at all.

He realized he must have made a mistake, because a painful expression graced his companion's face. The Paladin was just about to tell her not to answer, when she spoke up quietly. "Our family was murdered a long time ago, but me and my sister were able to run away."

"...Ah."

"But I wanted to be stronger, in order to find and get revenge on the idiots behind it! And these people from Seth's guild said that I could do that if I pledged loyalty for them." Scarlet grinned widely, as if what she just said was amusing. "Get what I mean?"

Maki nodded. Although it was a strange thing to be happy about.

"But that girl set out to be a sage anyway, saying she'll uphold the family tradition or whatever. But I guess it suits her." Scarlet shrugged as she said this. "She's always been able to see the future, except that she's so stupid in interpreting them. This one time, she-- What the hell are you grinning about?"

The Paladin noticed that he was, indeed, grinning widely. He even started laughing when Scarlet glared daggers at him. "I just used to think you were this creepy assassin cross who wanted to kill Mina." He rubbed the back of his neck sheepishly, as Scarlet glared at him more, as if inquiring on what the heck he meant by saying that. "When I saw you back in Alberta, bleeding, I thought that was the last I'd see you. I gues I just didn't expect that I'd be here, listening to you talk about how much you love your sister."

Scarlet looked dumbfounded by this as she topped in her tracks, embarassed. Maki didn't seem to realize that she had stopped, and he continued walking while humming a random tune.

"Y-you...! Don't make me sound like such a sissy!" Scarlet growled from behind him.

"What..?" Maki looked back at her, his expression twisted in confusion.

Just then, Seth, who was walking ahead of them, stopped and smacked the shoulder of Cain. Cain blinked and looked at this partner, and then at Scarlet who Seth was pointing at. "Look, Scarlet's blushing! This is new!" Seth said loudly. Even Cain, who was always had no expression, looked at Scarlet with curiosity.

"Scarlet... likes the Paladin...?" Cain muttered under his breath in question.

"I do _not!" _Scarlet screamed at the top of her lungs, marching off in a huff. Seth was grinning as Scarlet passed by him, and Cain stared at Maki.

"What?" Maki tilted his head in question, adressing Cain.

"Nothing." Cain replied, his voice loud and clear enough for Maki to hear. "It's just that expression of yours. It's the same one you keep giving Mina all the time."

Seth looked a bit surprised by this statement, since Cain rarely voiced out his opinions, and he _never_ talked to Maki on his own accord.

"I don't know what you're talking about." Maki said stubbornly as he looked the other way.

"Interesting..." Seth said to himself.

……………………………………

"Cain got me a present?!" Cheska said happilly as she practically bounced up and down as Mina tried to balance on a stool, reaching to the top most shelf of her drawer. It was probably a mistake that she had asked Cain to be the one to store it aside, since he seemed to enjoy putting things in the place she couldn't reach, just to annoy her.

"Y-yeah." Mina replied as her hand finally got what she was aiming for. It was a simple fox mask. The High Priestess gingerly hopped down from the stool and handed the mask to the little thief, who took it from her quickly.

"How cool!" Cheska said, examining the said ornament. "I didn't think he'd remember that I wanted this... Ah, there's a crack." The thief blinked and pointed to a small crack on the side of the mask, as if inquiring on why they would buy such a defective mask.

"Oh." Leaning down a bit, Mina looked at what Cheska was pointing at. She remembered the night when Cain had bought the said mask, and a mysterious blade had struck it, chipping it in the process. "I'm sorry. I... dropped it by accident."

"I see." Cheska smiled brightly at the High Priestess. "If it's you, I don't mind!" Then she stormed off to the living room, screaming for the names of Rai and Violet, eager to show them her new item.

Mina sighed to herself and followed the thief to the living room, where she was sitting inbetween Violet and Rai on the couch, and proudly proclaiming that her brother was the best in the world. Rai had a suspicious expression, as if she didn't want to acclaim that they were talking about _Cain._ Violet looked very interested in Cheska's story.

"Cheska and Cain must be really close!" Violet said happily.

The thief blinked, and looked at Violet with a confused and sad expression. "Actually, Cain left us in Morroc when I was a lot younger... without even saying a word, that idiot! I only saw him again last year, when he and Mina passed by the town. And the idiot wasn't even planning to say hi to me then!"

"Oh, how terrible!" Violet replied with a surprised expression. "How old were you then?"

Cheska seemed to think for a bit, and Rai and Mina exchanged looks, wondering if it was really okay to be talking about this.

"Well, it was aroud five years ago, so I was... seven or eight? My brother was my age now... Yup, that's right!" Cheska replied, grinning widely.

Mina seemed taken aback by this, and she excused herself for a moment to get a drink of water. When she arrived at the kitchen, she saw Cain's smokie snoozing on the table. It had grown accustomed to Cain leaving so much and it didn't acquire as much attention, like when it was first caught. Nowadays, it settled to just staying behind in the house and sleeping in the oddest places. Mina had excused herself because she couldn't stand Cheska talking about Cain leaving, since the little girl didn't know the truth.

_Cain had told her all about it, on one of those days before they left for Geffen. It was a quiet afternoon, and they were out, relaxing on the grass that settled just outside Prontera. Mina was humming to herself as Cain sat beside her, leaning on a huge tree that offered them shade._

_"I asked Nana to send Cheska over." Cain told Mina. His expression looked uncomfortable. "You can look after her, right?"_

_Mina nodded. "Of course. But what's the occasion?"_

_"Just that she'll be much safer." The assassin cross mumbled. "There's nobody there to protect her but Nana."_

_Mina nodded, and there was silence for a while. Cain blinked as Mina suddenly leaned over and rested her chin on his shoulder. "Hey, Cain, I've got a question."_

_"What?"_

_"Remember back in Morroc, you said that Cheska thought she was an orphan, but your dad's the guild master, right?" Mina asked, noticing that it wasn't a topic Cain wanted to talk about, judging from the mild flinch he gave away. She continued, anyway. "Is it okay if you tell me what happened?"_

_"Ah." Cain replied. "It's just going to depress you, though."_

_Mina shook her head and tightened her grip around his arm. "I'm fine with that."_

_Cain shrugged and started his story. "Uh... well, my...fa--the guild master, when me and Cheska were kids, we didn't even think he was alive. And my mom was really poor, so I had to go around stealing stuff, and it really upset my mom but she didn't complain since it was the only way we ate."_

_"I'd understand that..." Mina said softly. "Go on, please."_

_"Then one day, this guy comes and my mom tells me and Chesca to go to bed, but we hear them yelling and throwing things, anyway. Then my mom calls for me, and when I get down, she's bleeding, and the guy suddenly punches me and tells me that he's going to take me out to train."_

_"Your... father?"_

_Cain nodded. "Yeah. And he was really strong and grabbed me, and even my mom couldn't stop him, and Cheska was asleep by then. And, there, I was forced into his stupid guild even though I didn't want to."_

_"But... I thought..." Mina whispered. "I thought he killed your mom."_

_"Well, he did... kind of..." Cain mumbled. "When I became an assassin, they wouldn't cage me up anymore, so I went to Morroc to look at things. Then I found out that my mother wouldn't eat when I left, and it made her really ill, and she died afterwards."_

_Mina smiled sadly, reaching up to stroke Cain's hair to calm him. "And I suppose you didn't say hi to Cheska at that time?"_

_Cain shrugged. "Didn't see the need to."_

_There was silence for a while, and Cain unconsciously drooped forward to lean his forehead against Mina._

_"He's crazy, though..." Cain mumbled. "He won't stop at anything just to get what he wants."_

_"What does he want?"_

_"He wants everyone to be afraid of him."_

_Mina giggled. "Well, that's an odd thing to want."_

_Cain smirked, and his smirk faded almost instantly. "And when I told him that I wanted to leave the guild, he threatened to go after Cheska next."_

_The High Priestess's eyes widened. "Ah!" She was in awe. How could someboday--anybody, threaten to kill his own daughter like that? No wonder Cain, the one who never showed expression, would flinch everytime this guy was being talked about. And she was a witness to just how cruel this person could be. Back in Juno, he had beat Cain to shreds and left his own son to die._

……………………………………

"Odd..." Scarlet muttered. They were finally in Geffen dungeon, but to their surprise, there didn't seem to be anybody there, not even the monsters who were supposed to be aggressive. One monster had appeared, but on sight of them, ran away as fast as it's feet could muster.

"They're here. A lot of them." Seth muttered, pointing to the next set of stairs that led to the lowest part of the dungeon. "This is bad. You think your darling father is here, too, Cain?"

Cain snarled at his partner, obviously disgusted at the way he addressed his dad. "He's probably not here. That guy rarely joins group missions."

"Great, then." Seth said with a smirk. He looked at his companions. Two assassin crosses and a paladin. "Doesn't seem like we'll have a difficult time. We were the three of the strongest in our Guild, and Maki's one of the strongest in the Prontera army."

Maki blinked and looked at his companions. "Somehow, I feel a bit left out here..."

"Should we split up to look for the plant?" Scarlet asked of her companions.

"But we might get into some tough spot if one of us get cornered by them." Seth replied, pointing over to the staircase. He meant the group of their ex-guildmembers who were also currently looking for the plant.

"It'll take too long if we go as a group." Cain pointed out.

Seth sighed. "Fine, we'll go in pairs. I'll go with Cain, and let's just hope nobody gets killed today." Then he marched forward. Cain shrugged and followed his partner as they descended the staircase. For a moment, Maki and Scarlet just stared at eachother in confusion.

"It's probably because they've been partners since time immemorial." Scarlet explained as she and the Paladin walked forward. "So it's just natural that they go together, for them."

Maki shrugged, but figured that Scarlet was right. Although he forgot a lot, Seth was probably Cain's bestfriend. It just felt unnatural for him that Cain would have any friends at all, and this was actually the first time he saw the two in action.

Cain and Seth were walking, looking right and left in the process. What they were looking for was a small plant, very difficult to see and it had a very strange exterior. It was scarlet red and it seemed to be made of a material of glass, and it would only grow on the tenth day of the third month, which was tonight. The very next morning, it would just wilt away. It's said that it was a very powerful magican who created the plant.

Suddenly, a strange sound emitted from a nearby direction. As if on instinct, Cain and Seth both concealed themselves. Around three of their previous guildmates passed by, talking in hushed voices. There was a Priest with them, who suddenly stopped right in front of the two assassin crosses. As he stopped and peered before him, his other guildmates continued talking.

"They found it already, apparently. We have to meet by the entra-"

"Ssh." The priest suddenly said out loudly. He pointed before him. "There are two others hiding here."

"Interesting..." Seth announced as he and Cain got out from their concealment, as they didn't see the need to hide anymore. The eyes of their former guildmates widened as they realized who was before them. "You're the guys we used to order around. Am I right?"

They backed away slowly, as if they knew just what kind of predicament they were in. Even if they were facing traitors, it was still no secret that they were obviously weaker.

"Who has the plant?" Cain asked bluntly, his face placid, which made him seem even more frightful. The other group shook their heads furiously, refusing to answer.

Just then another group started running towards them, ignoring Seth and Cain. They were rambling on quickly in panic. One of them said, "Somebody took it from us!"

The priest, who seemed to be the leader, started cursing the other group, and almost nothing could be heard as the words 'Doppelganger' and 'you morons' were mixed in. Seth and Cain exchanged looks, and at the moment, they didn't really care that nobody was taking much notice of them.

"Get out of my way." Cain muttered under his breath as he pushed the people aside and roughly started walking towards the direction the new group came from. Seth followed him with a grim face, ignoring the surprised faces the group gave them.

The two of them stopped in their tracks as they saw Scarlet, standing there with a glass plant in her hand and looking at the ground solemnly. When she heard them close by, she looked up, and for the first time since they met her, Seth and Cain saw Scarlet crying.

"Where's the Paladin?" Cain asked, making no move to console the girl. Seth didn't say anything as Scarlet approached them.

"H-he... the doppelganger..." Her voice was cracking as she almost stumbled in her tracks, unable to keep herself up. "The doppelganger dragged his body away... b-but he gave me this before-"

"Where's Scarlet, too?" Seth inquired, cocking his head boldly. Scarlet's eyes widened by this inquiry, and she froze in her tracks.

"What are you talking abou-"

She wasn't able to finish her sentence as a sharp blade suddenly struck her back. A black mist enveloped the body and she staggered away quickly, showing her true self. Maki, the wielder of the blade, watched in awe as the real Scarlet ran over to them from behind. The real glass plant was also in her hands.

"Huh?" Scarlet asked in curiosity as the black mist sputtered some words they couldn't understand and then disappeared into thin air. "Is a doppelganger really that weak?"

Seth shook his head. "No, he was already wounded badly before we got here."

"How'd you figure out it was a fake?" Maki asked with interest. The group started to walk towards the exit, hoping they wouldn't meet the group from before. Surprisingly, that had been pretty easy.

"As if Scarlet would cry." Cain muttered under her breath.

Scarlet's eyes widened in amazement. "She was crying?"

"Apparently, Maki had died." Seth said, continuing the story.

Maki laughed sheepishly as Scarlet shot him a furious look. He couldn't understand why she did that. Finally, she spoke up. "I know it was a doppelganger, but how dare you raise your sword to someone with my face!"

"H-huh?" Maki blinked.

The three men watched as Scarlet huffed and went ahead, obviously upset.

"What a stupid thing to be angry about." Cain said as they watched Scarlet move ahead, hands on her hips.

"Nah." Seth grinned. He shot Maki a curious grin, to which Maki replied with one of confusion. "We just keep forgetting that she's a girl."

……………………………………

Back in Prontera, the girls were sleeping peacefully. Mina and Cheska were sharing a room, while Rai and Violet shared the other one. It was deep in the night, and Cheska was using the smokie as a pillow. Then, Mina woke up with a start and sat up straight. The High Priestess glanced around quickly. There was something making noises out in the hall.

As if on cue, Violet entered their room, dragging Rai by the arm. Rai was rubbing her eyes and protesting loudly, annoyed that she was suddenly shaken out of her sleep.

"The guests are coming." Violet announced. There was a sparkle in her eye, but it looked more sad than happy. "We must go before they get here."

"W-what...?" Rai asked, annoyed. She could remember Violet carrying around plates earlier that day to 'prepare for guests'. She had no idea why they suddenly had to leave in the middle of the night to avoid her awaited guests.

"They're coming for something Mina has." Violet replied. "Mina, we should go... If we don't leave, Cain will be angry at you..."

Mina looked up at her and got out of her bed. Cheska started stirring, but she didn't wake up.

"They want that..." Violet said, pointing around Mina's neck where the precious pendant rested.

Mina and Rai exchanged looks.

"Violet, can you see the future?" Rai asked suddenly. Mina started to move around quickly and grab some blue gemstones from the closet, then she shook Cheska to wake up.

"Future? What?" Violet blinked with that usual childish look of hers. "No, no! I just dreamt about it. But it would be nice if I were right, right?" She giggled playfully.

"What is it...?" Cheska mumbled as Mina sat her upright. She glanced around at the serious face of the others, except for Violet who was now humming random tunes.

"Where does this go?" Rai asked, pointing at the portal that Mina summoned.

A light crimson met Mina's cheeks. "Axis." She whispered.

Rai whistled. One way or another, Violet's dream would still come true: Cain was going to be furious when he got back.

**To Be Continued**

YEY, I UPDATED. :D Sorry for the seriousness of this chapter. I wish I could write action scenes, but it seems that I suck for that, so I apologize for being vague. Sigh.


	5. Dreams and Betrayal

_**Second Glance: Untold Stories **_

**Chapter Five: Dreams and Betrayal**

_Rai was serving drinks to some knights when she noticed a hooded figure by the corner, looking at her curiously. She instantly recognized him, and so when she was done serving the knights, she came over to him and smiled. "You've been here almost every day."_

_A light smile came from beneath the cloak, and he chuckled in reply. "Yeah, my partner and I are staying in town for a while. Rai, is it?"_

_Rai's smile brightened, and she nodded. "Uh-huh! What's your name?"_

"_I'm Seth." He replied, reaching out a hand and shaking hers. _

_Starting that day, she would always take aside a few minutes to chat with this certain hooded man. She was on the job, but she didn't mind. The boss adored her, anyway. One day, she asked curiously, "Why do you always wear a hood? I don't think I've ever seen your face."_

"_Oh, you've seen it." He replied. He pointed towards the nearby bulletin board, where a couple of pictures were posted. "Third row, second picture." Rai turned around and studied the board for a while, and then she gasped lightly. She looked back at the hooded man._

"_You're Wanted?"_

"_That's right."_

_She laughed. "Well, that's okay. As long as you don't stick a knife at me, I won't be scared of you."_

_He laughed in reply. "Everyone else is, though."_

………………

"_Hm?" Rai questioned as a familiar face, not hidden this time, entered the bar and took a seat in his usual place. Several customers turned around to look at the man, but they were all criminals, too. Nobody said a word, but they were all frightened of the man. "No hiding the face, today?"_

_Seth smiled in reply. "It's unfair that I can admire you face, but you can't admire mine, isn't it?"_

_Rai gave a laugh. "A bit conceited, aren't we?"_

"_I suppose." He replied with a smile._

………………

"_Do you have a boyfriend?" Seth asked her curiously._

_Rai shook her head. "Why, are you willing to try out?"_

"_Why don't you have one? Haven't met the right guy?"_

"_They aren't for me."_

_And he shrugged in reply. That was the end of their conversation for that particular day._

_And for once in her life, Rai was disappointed that a guy didn't ask her out._

………………

_Then, one day, things were different. A high official had been killed in an accident, but it was rumoured to be an assassination. Whoever was found guilty was to be sentenced to death. Seth entered the bar but didn't go to his usual place. He walked right up to Rai who was clearing some glasses by the counter._

"_If I asked you to go out with me, would you say yes?"_

_Rai blinked, eyes wide with shock. "Are you asking me out?"_

"_Maybe."_

"_I'd say yes."_

"_Fantastic." And then Seth placed his hood back on, like the first time they met. "So don't go out with anybody until the next time we meet."_

_And that was the last time they saw each other, until they met again in Prontera, a lot of months after._

………………

"I'm sorry, Axis!" Mina said frantically as she bowed up and down in apology. Her companions, Rai, Violet and Cheska all stared at Axis in awe, with Cain's smokie tucked in Cheska's arms. Axis looked tired and as if he had just come back to the castle, but he looked at the four girls with a sheepish but confused smile. "I'm so sorry to impose such a burden on you!"

"I didn't know you had an exclusive warp to the insides of the castle, Mina!" Rai said enthusiastically as she waved to Axis. "And right in the king's own hall! Does Cain know about this?"

"T-the king!" Cheska said as she walked over to Axis and stared up at him with huge eyes. "I can't believe I'm face to face with the king! This is amazing!"

Axis laughed and pat the kid on the head lightly, and he focused his attention on the three older ladies. "I let Mina draw a memo chart here, in case of emergencies. Is something wrong?"

This is when Violet finally spoke up, and she spoke in such a happy tone, as if this was nothing out of the ordinary. "Some dangerous strangers were about to come to the place we were staying at, King Axis! So Mina suggested we go here."

"Dangerous strangers..?" Axis blinked and looked at Violet, and instantly, a hint of understanding flashed in his eyes. He had met Scarlet before, and Maki did tell him about Scarlet's twin and their current predicament. He was also told that Violet could see the future. "Then it's very fortunate that you got here on time." He walked away a few steps and seemed to be in deep thought. "Shall we send someone over to inspect Maki's home..?"

Mina shook her head. "N-no. That might cause much more trouble."

Axis paused and then smiled to Mina in reply. "I understand." He then pointed to a few doors behind them. "You may use those rooms for the time being. You all look so tired. We'll talk about this in the morning, alright?"

"Awesome!" Cheska replied, and she ran to the nearest door she could find. The child was very tired, after all. Mina thanked Axis for the last time and followed Cheska. Rai was about to follow suit when she realized that Violet was not budging. Curiously, the gypsy looked back and saw that Violet was staring at Axis very intently.

"Hey, Violet!" Rai called out. "What are you doing? Don't you know the king is engaged?"

Violet titled her head and looked at Rai in question, and Axis laughed sheepishly. "Engaged..?"

The gypsy gave a sigh of exasperation and went to a room. "Never mind, I'm so tired, I need my sleep."

Axis gulped a bit as Violet went back to staring at him. He couldn't understand why the sage was acting that way, so he finally spoke up. "Is something wrong?"

Violet looked upset when she stared at him, an expression she rarely had. "I have seen you before, in a dream."

"Oh..?"

"Yes." The sage nodded and put a hand on his shoulder. "You looked very tired and upset. And you were staring at darkness. And people were crying at the sides."

Axis stared at the sage's hand on his shoulder, and he looked distraught. He was already very tired, the result of not getting much sleep these past few days. Being a king was a very troubling matter, of course. But he was also curious about her dream. "What would that mean?"

"It means that you must stop blaming yourself." Violet said, her eyes looking up at him with a twinkle. "If you try to keep up a façade that everything is okay just so others aren't troubled, it will get worse. And you… must avoid darkness. Or else somebody will hurt you… no, everyone around you while you're not looking."

The king kept silent, and forced a smile at the sage. He didn't want to confirm a thing she was saying. Violet took her hand off his shoulder.

"You look very tired. You must go to sleep." Axis said, patting her head. "Violet, am I right?"

"Very right!" The sage said happily. "Good night, King Axis!"

"Axis is fine. Good night." He replied, not in the usual happy tone which he usually used. She nodded and turned around, choosing a room for herself. As she left, Axis stared at her retreating back.

'_That is… a very interesting girl._' Axis thought to himself as he ran a hand through his hair.

……………………………………

"This is just dumb." Maki said under his breath as Scarlet was out of distance. He stared down at his hands where a very small portion of food lay, and he stared at his two male companions to see the fine amount in their own hands. Scarlet was the one who bought the food, of course. "She can't honestly be angry because I hit the doppelganger who took her form, is she? She was right beside me when we saw it, so it's not like I could have been mistaken."

"Maybe you did something as equally dumb." Cain replied as he bit into the meat bread. He had about three pieces of those, while Maki had only one. And neither of the other men wanted to give their share up for the Paladin. Cain was becoming more talkative these days. "Girls are very strange."

"I disagree." Seth laughed as he leaned against a tree behind him. "I think they're very easy to please."

"How can you say that? All Rai does is whine at you." Maki replied while rolling his eyes.

"Yes, but when I give her something, I _get some."_ Seth retorted quickly with a glint in his eyes. Cain gave a sigh of exasperation and ignored the vulgarity of his partner, while Maki didn't seem to like the picture of his best friend that way, so he wore such a disgusted frown on his face. "Cain also gets some." Seth added, resulting to a rock which hit the side of his face, of which he ignored completely. "So I suggest you just bow down to these strange creatures, or you'll never get any."

"Not like I need it." The paladin replied in bitterness.

Suddenly, Scarlet returned, and the men changed the topic to something "more interesting": Cain's smokie.

"So, what brand of pet food does your smokie eat?" Seth asked Cain in much interest. Cain stared back at him ludicrously.

"We've still got a long distance until Prontera." Scarlet said with a heavy sigh as she took a seat on a large rock. Maki looked at her and noticed that she was getting thinner, since the last time they met. And as usual, he observed just how much Scarlet and Violet looked alike, it was almost impossible to tell them apart. "This is getting really tiring. I wish we brought a priestess with us."

Seth shrugged in reply. "The only priestess we have is Mina, and it would be too much of a risk."

"That's true." Scarlet replied. "What the hell are you staring at?" She suddenly snapped at Maki, who quickly reverted his attention to the ground.

"Not this again." Cain sighed and stood up, staring to walk off towards the direction of Prontera. "Let's go."

Maki unexpectedly stood up and followed Cain, and Seth stood up to go towards them when a hand suddenly clasped around his wrist. Seth blinked and looked back at Scarlet, who waited for both Cain and Maki to get out of ear shot.

"Why are you doing this?" Scarlet whispered.

"Hm?" Replied Seth with a smile on his face. "Well, because you're a friend, Cain's a friend, Rai's a girlfrie—"

"You know what I mean." Putting her hand away from his wrist, Scarlet continued to whisper. "I won't forgive you if anything happened to Violet."

Seth put away his façade and looked at Scarlet intently, and he ran a hand through his hand in frustration. "They won't harm her." He said in an air of mysteriousness. "You can take my word for that. They won't harm anyone."

"Why don't you tell Cain? He's also noticed." Scarlet whispered.

"Of course he has. I'm sure Maki has, too." Seth looked genuinely upset as he said this, and he covered his face with his hand. "Nobody wants to accuse me. This must be how it feels to be trusted. It's funny, isn't it?"

It was not funny. Scarlet did not laugh. She started off walking towards the direction that Maki and Cain went.

"Scarlet."

She stopped in her tracks. "What?"

"How did you know it was me?"

Scarlet kept silent for a while before continuing to walk. She then said, "Because you're the fakest person I know."

……………………………………

"This is delicious!" Cheska exclaimed as she put some waffles into her mouth, and handing some to Cain's smokie who had started to get attached to the little kid. The four ladies had grabbed a seat on the king's dining table, and none of the people-in-waiting seemed to want to question who they were. They were acquainted with Mina, though, but they still couldn't understand. And Axis wasn't up from bed yet, so it made it even stranger.

"I don't have an appetite…" Rai said when Mina asked her why she wasn't taking a bite. As if on cue, Axis came out from his chambers and took a seat with the ladies, cheerfully greeting them good morning.

"Maki's home was ransacked last night, I heard." Axis told Mina. "Some of his troop members went to check on him and saw his house in a mess. But they also heard that their commander was on a journey, so they were relieved to know he wasn't hurt."

Mina nodded. She couldn't imagine what would have happened if Violet hadn't woken them up the night before. Violet, by the way, was playing with Cheska and the smokie.

"And the sun was high, and the moon was low, and everyone sang and danced…!" Violet hummed in a strange tune, and Cheska learned the song and sang alongside the sage.

"She's very strange, isn't she?" Axis chuckled as he observed Violet. She seemed to be in such a childish mood, unlike the night before when the sage told him about her dream. It was like she had been possessed then as she told him the tale in such a serious manner.

"Oh, Axis!" Violet suddenly proclaimed, and Axis was shot out of his reverie at the sudden yelling of his name. "I have a favour to ask!"

"Hm?" Axis inquired.

"I had another dream, but I can't understand it." Violet pouted.

The king nodded, and Rai looked up from her plate to look back and forth between the two. They seemed to be a lot friendlier all of a sudden.

"Do you want to tell us about it?" Axis said in a kind tone, as if he was a teacher talking to a little child.

Violet looked around and contemplated about it for a bit, and then she shook her head profusely. "Silly Axis! It's a secret dream! It's your dream, so I can only tell you!"

Mina giggled at Violet's antics and Axis looked taken aback by the reply to his kind question. He also found it very amusing, the way Violet addressed him. He said with a huge smile on his face, "Alright, do you want to go talk about it elsewhere?"

"That would be great!" Violet exclaimed as she suddenly stood up and shook his chair, forcing him to get up in surprise. "Let's go!"

Axis looked at her with awe. He had just woken up and he was hungry, but he saw the way Mina looked at him with an amused look and decided that breakfast could wait. Violet started to sing her strange song again as Axis led her towards the door that led to the garden.

"She's such a kid." Rai mumbled under her breath.

Mina giggled. "I think it's nice how Axis is all lively again."

Once they were in the garden, Axis walked behind Violet as she skipped and examined a beautiful rose. He blinked and realized that she had forgotten about why they were there when she suddenly stood up straight and asked, "Hi, Axis! What are we doing here again?"

"You were going to tell me about your dream..?"

"Oh, that's right!" Violet said in victory as she put her hands on her hips. "Axis, I saw someone familiar in the darkness. He also looked very sad. He didn't seem to like what he was doing, but he had no choice."

"I thought you said you couldn't interpret this dream…?" Axis asked in curiosity as he tilted his head in question.

Violet looked sad as she stared at the ground. "What I can't interpret is why Seth would want to betray his friends."

The king looked at Violet, wide-eyed. He opened his mouth to say something when somebody suddenly called out Violet's name in anger. Axis and Violet looked towards the door that led to the garden to see Rai standing there, fuming.

"What did you say?! Seth would never betray us!" Rai yelled as she stomped towards the sage. "You take that back!"

"I-I'm sorry." Violet whispered as she took a step back.

"You tell me, right here, right now!" Rai yelled as she took a hold of the sage's shoulders tightly. "Just where would you get that idea?"

"A dream." Violet replied. "It hurts, please let go…"

"Rai…" Axis said calmly. The gypsy looked at him sternly. "Let go of her, she's only telling us what she saw in her dream."

Rai let go of Violet sharply , causing the sage to stumble back and trip to the ground. Suddenly, Mina came running out in panic.

"I… I…" Mina said, as if she was genuinely guilty about something. She held her elbows in a miserable manner. "The pendant… it…"

"What?" Rai grumbled. At the same time, Axis held out his hand and helped Violet up. "Did the dumb smokie eat it?"

"It turned into sand." Mina finished. There was a light pause until Violet spoke up in a confident tone.

"It was switched." The sage said.

……………………………………

"Where is that damn idiot?!" Cain grumbled under his breath, addressing his question to Maki. The paladin stared back at him in reply, his eyes in panic. Seth had suddenly disappeared when they were crossing the forest.

"He had been awfully quiet after we had lunch and Scarlet wanted to tell him something." Maki replied thoughtfully. "Maybe Scarlet decided to make him miserable, too—"

"What did you say?!" Scarlet suddenly yelled as she appeared almost out of nowhere. Maki gulped. He hadn't realized that she had been so close. But Scarlet quickly discarded the question. There were more important matters at the moment. She looked at Cain and Maki, her eyes serious.

"The glass plant. It's gone." She whispered.

**To Be Continued**

**A/N:** YEY, UPDATE. This chapter had been sitting around for almost forever, and I'm so happy I finally got around to finishing it. I wanted to focus more on Seth now, since he had always been such a background character that I never emphasized much. And I wanted him to have a bigger role, so here we are! Though… he has a "bad role", now? Well. I don't know. Just stay tuned or something.

Oh, and I have something amazing to show you guys. Someone actually made me fanart! Look here: http / gladiariaalata . deviantart . com / art / RO-Cain-and-Mina-69533040 I'm so happy. Thanks for all the support, I really appreciate it. It makes me feel so guilty when I read back and see how poorly written I did some chapters, and I always feel like editing mistakes or redoing it, but I just can't bring myself to do that. Because I suck. :


	6. Unexpected

**Chapter Six**

"_I think his name's Seth. He just came back from a mission, and lost his partner." The blacksmith told a younger Cain, who was seated nearby and resting his head in his hands. "He's one of the leader's most trusted men, so you can count on him being skilled."_

_Cain shrugged. "I didn't ask."_

_The blacksmith looked at Cain, who wasn't paying attention to him. This young man had just recently turned into an assassin cross, and there were rumours that he was the leader's son. Nobody wanted to confirm this, though. Soon enough, the door to the room they were staying at barged open and there appeared a tall assassin cross with a huge smiled plastered on his face._

"_Where's my new partner?" This new person said. He saw Cain nearby and studied him. "You must be Cain. Name's Seth."_

_Cain glanced at him quickly, but said nothing._

"_You're the chief's son, aren't you?" Seth asked bluntly as he took a seat near Cain. The blacksmith looked up for a while. It was the first time he saw someone actually address the question. Cain didn't answer the question, though, and just asked Seth what their mission was going to be._

_Seth ignored his question, and started blabbering on about a dancer he met in Prontera. "She was the prettiest girl I've ever seen, and that's saying a lot, since I've been with a lot of women. But I had to go since I got called back here to meet you. I'm hoping to see her again, though. Do you think I have a chance?"_

_Cain looked him up and down, and said a few words. "What's the point in meeting anybody significant?" And then he stood up and left the room. The blacksmith who had been there the whole time looked at Seth with grimace._

"_He's definitely the chief's son." The blacksmith mumbled._

_Seth wasn't listening, though. 'What's the point..?' He thought, as he scratched the back of his head. What was the point? Even if he did come back for that dancer, it wasn't like he would be around long enough to actually be able to spend time with her._

'_Yup. No point.'_

……_._

_Seth walked around Geffen. His partner had gone missing again, something which he did a lot lately. They were supposed to be on their way to Prontera for a mission. He passed by a few people and thought he saw Cain in the corner of his eye, but he dismissed it as a mistake, since that person was speaking to a Priestess. And Cain would never speak to a Priestess. That certain Priestess did seem familiar, though, so he turned around to look at her face. And much to his surprise, it really was Cain speaking to her._

_They seemed to be having an argument of some sort, and Seth wondered what the girl had done to piss Cain off. You didn't need a lot to piss him off, though. Seth could see the irate look on the blonde girl's face, and decided that it was time he intervened._

"_Cain!" Seth called out. "We have to go." Cain glanced at him and gave the priestess one last glare before he stomped over to Seth. Seth started ranting about their latest mission, but realized that Cain wasn't even listening. Cain was standing in place, looking at the Priestess who was walking away. Seth stared for a while from his partner and to the Priestess, then he asked, simply, "Cain, who is she, in the first place?"_

_This shook Cain out of his reverie. "Don't know, don't care." He replied._

_And Seth blinked. _

……_._

"_I thought meeting someone significant was pointless?" Seth asked as he bit into an apple. It was dark, and they were just sitting on a rooftop, which was coincidentally near Maki's apartment. From the outside, they could see Maki and Mina speaking to each other through the window. Cain was staring at them intently with a bit of an annoyed look on his face._

"_What are you talking about?" Cain muttered._

_Seth pointed to Mina with a smirk. "You said it yourself. You said it was pointless. Now you have a smokie following you around because of her."_

_Cain shrugged. There was silence for a while._

"_Don't worry, I won't tell the guild leader."_

_Cain looked at Seth at the corner of his eye, questioning._

"_You know that I think of you as my best friend, don't you?" Seth said with a huge grin._

"_Shut up."_

……_._

"That damned Seth." Maki muttered while clenching and unclenching his fists. He looked at Scarlet accusingly. "You knew he was going to do this. That's what you two were talking about."

Scarlet's eyes widened and she looked back at Maki, furiously. "I knew we were being followed, I didn't know Seth was in it, too!"

"You knew he was up to something."

Scarlet opened her mouth to retort when Cain suddenly glared at the both of them.

"He had a good reason." Cain muttered. "We just don't know why. Let it go." And he walked away, towards the direction of Prontera. Scarlet and Maki looked at each other with confused looks, and back to Cain's retreating back. They didn't actually think that Cain would defend somebody who was supposedly a traitor, and one who was helping out his father, of all people. It was truly unexpected.

"They're friends."Maki concluded, and started off to go after Cain. He was a bit surprised when Scarlet made no move to follow them, and he turned around to see her stuck in place. She was staring at the ground intently with a disappointed look. "Are you coming or what?"

"It _was_ my fault, wasn't it?" Scarlet whispered. "I knew he was up to something. You were right. And I didn't do anything to stop him. I didn't even tell you or Cain."

With wide eyes, Maki watched as she suddenly wiped a tear away from her eyes.

"And I shouldn't be crying. It was my fault. If Violet is harmed because of this, it was my fault. What the hell is wrong with me?"

"It…" Maki muttered, but he couldn't find the words to say. "It wasn't your fault." He said, even though he knew he was the one who just accused her of everything.

"Shut up." Scarlet said before walking away.

Sighing, Maki rubbed the back of his neck. He had known that Seth had hidden intentions from the start. Nobody was just that perfectly happy. A lot of people acted that happy, actually, but nobody faked it as much as Seth did.

……_._

"I refuse to believe it was Seth." Rai said in a defiant tone, hands on hips.

"Well…" Mina whispered, trying to calm her friend down. Axis was nearby, watching them with a grim look. He raised an eyebrow at Mina, to which Mina replied with a sheepish smile. "We're really not sure if it was him, are we? It could have been anybody."

"But that crazy sage thinks it was him!" Rai yelled.

Just then, the 'crazy sage' walked in, humming another strange tune. She had an enthusiastic smile on her face, and didn't seem to realize the tension in the room. She waved to Axis who was on the other side of the room and was just about to walk over to him when Rai suddenly addressed her.

"Why the hell are you so happy?" Rai asked in a strict tone.

Violet tilted her head in question, and smiled at Rai. "But it's such a nice day. Shouldn't we all be happy?"

Rai stared at her for a while. After a few seconds, Rai raised her hand in a move to slap the sage. Before it met the sage's face, though, her hand was stopped by a tight grasp on her wrist. Rai looked at Mina, who held her wrist in place and looked at her solemnly.

"Rai, please don't be so childish." Mina whispered.

The gypsy shook Mina off and then walked out of the room.

"I'm sorry…?" Violet whispered to Mina.

Mina gave a heavy sigh and then gave Violet a weak smile. The sage looked back at her with a slightly stunned look, and opened her mouth, probably to ask about what just happened, when the King's voice interrupted them.

"Are you girls ready for the upcoming festival?" He asked kindly, with a smile on his face. "I heard there's going to be a lot of bazaars; you two would probably appreciate that."

"Are you going to get something for your fiancée?" Mina said and smiled at him. Violet took a seat beside Axis and snagged a cracker away from his hands. Axis stared at Violet for a while with an amused smile, and Violet caught his stare.

"What?" Violet blinked at him.

"You heal fast." Axis stated, and he looked back at Mina who took a seat nearby. "I'll get her something nice if I see one that she would probably like."

"Get who something nice?" Violet inquired. She never listened, did she?

"My fiancée." Axis replied.

"You're engaged?!" The sage asked with a huge smile, as she stole some more of his crackers. "Why didn't I know this? What's she like? How'd you meet?"

Axis blinked, and Mina smiled at him sheepishly. He looked back at Violet, wondering how to reply at all her inquiries. "It's… uh, a tradition that all Kings need to find a queen, because they need an heir to the throne. It's an arranged marriage."

"Do you like her?" The sage inquired.

"Yes, of course."

"Do you love her?"

Mina coughed. "Violet, I don't think…"

Violet blinked at Mina, then at Axis, who was smiling back at her in embarrassment. She said, "I just think it's lonely to be engaged to somebody you don't love. Don't you think that's lonely, Mina?"

"Uhm…" Mina started.

"Have you ever been in love, Axis? You do know what it's like, right?" Violet said with a huge smile. Right about this time, Mina looked around the room, trying to avoid this conversation at all costs. Axis could sense Mina's uneasiness, though, and quickly changed the subject.

"How about you, Violet? Are you interested in anybody at the moment?" Axis asked.

The sage blushed a deep crimson, and didn't answer. She just stole what was left of Axis's crackers. This made Axis laugh, and he reverted his attention back to Mina.

"When do you think Maki and the others will come back?" Axis asked.

"I'm not sure." Mina replied, with her eyes on Violet, who got even more flustered at the mention of Maki's name. The High Priestess smiled to herself, knowingly.

……_._

"Heh. You're back."

Blinking, Seth looked up to where the voice came from. It was a tall blacksmith, the one who introduced him to Cain. He looked down at Seth with a questioning look. "Yeah, I'm back." Seth replied with a huge grin. "Are you happy to see me?"

"No." The blacksmith replied bluntly. "Hurry up, he's waiting for you."

Seth stood up and went through the door with an annoyed look on his face. When he entered, he was greeted by around three assassin crosses, all who looked up at him and greeted him with a nod of the head. Seth ignored them and looked straight, at the guild leader who was breathing heavily, looking at him crossly. Seth smirked at him, amused at his pathetic state.

"I may not be top form at the moment, but these men will torture you at the snap of my finger, Seth." He said hoarsely. "Where is the Glass Plant?"

"It's right here." Seth muttered while rolling his eyes. He reached into his pocket and brought out the said item, which seemed to glow in the dim room. All eyes were on it, and the guild leader tapped his finger until one of his men stood up to take it from Seth. Seth glared at this man before handing it over. The man put it in a small pouch and put it beside the leader, who turned his attention back to Seth.

"Where's the pendant?" He asked.

Seth shrugged. "I don't know."

There was silence, and the guild leader spoke up again. "I know you. You like to lie. Tell me where the pendant is. You have something in your hand, and I want you to show it to me."

"It's not the pendant." Seth replied, defiantly. He was, indeed, clutching something in his hand, but he refused to show it to anybody.

"You are getting conceited, boy." The guild leader said, his voice much louder and angrier now. "Show me what that is."

Staring at him for a while, Seth raised one of his eyebrows "Why would I lie about something like that? I just gave you the plant. What's the point, then, if I had the pendant, too, and didn't give it to you?"

And then Seth barged out of the room, annoyed. Some of the other men in the room stared at his back, wide-eyed. It was rare to see someone talk to their leader like that, but they were even more surprised to see that their leader did nothing about it.

Seth was muttering something under his breath as he made his way out the hideout. He looked down at his hand where a red ribbon lay.

……_._

Back in Prontera, Rai leaned against a wall and stared at a run-down building. The wooden sign above its door was faded, and half of it had been vandalized. She would never forget this place – it used to be the bar she worked in, and it was where she met _that _guy. She had a lot of bad memories in that place, and he was probably the best she could remember from it.

"Hi, Rai!" Said a familiar voice that shook the gypsy out of her reverie. Violet appeared out of nowhere, and she looked happy, as usual. The sage took a comfortable seat beside Rai and ignored the annoyed glare she was being given.

"What the hell, Violet?"

"Those crackers were delicious!" Violet said to her earnestly. "Do you think the castle gets their crackers done somewhere? Because they were just amazing!"

The gypsy rolled her eyes, and got ready to leave. Before she did, she said, "It must be so awesome to not have a care for the world."

"Hmm… I had a dream about you, Rai."

Rai raised her eyebrow. She sighed, thinking about the situation. Violet was looking up at her with a bright smile, like she hadn't noticed the hostility at all. "Fine!" Rai said, exasperated. She took her seat again, and looked at Violet. "Tell me your dream."

The sage looked enthusiastic, and she went on rambling about her dream. "Well, Rai, you were blind!"

"I was _what_?!"

"You were blind!" Violet repeated in a tone like this was the best thing yet. "But it was okay, you were holding on to a red ribbon, and it was guiding you around. So it's okay that you were blind!"

Rai raised her eyebrows for the nth time that day. "Okay. I was blind. I was being guided by ribbons. What the hell is this supposed to mean?"

"It means that, sometimes, you're just blind. That's it." Violet said with a weak smile. "You follow what that person sets for you. Whoever is holding the other end, I mean."

"Bullshit." Rai muttered. She stood up and turned around. Violet stayed in place.

"Mm!" Violet said, simply. "Goodbye!"

But Rai didn't budge. Violet stared at her back for a while, wondering what was going on. Then, the gypsy turned around and pointed a finger at her, and the sage looked back with a huge smile, happy that she got Rai's attention again.

"Your dumb dreams, how often are they correct?"

"All the time!" Violet replied with a huge grin.

"How would you know? You don't even have most of your memory." Rai retorted, obviously annoyed.

"But I know I'm right!" Violet replied, pouting. "How come you don't wear the red ribbons in your hair anymore, like you used to?"

Rai paused, and stared at Violet. Her expression softened, and she crossed her arms. "I gave them to Seth, before they left. You happy?!"

"Oh, very! That was very sweet of you. I'm sure it made him really happy!" Violet stood up. "I'm going now, I want more crackers!"

"Yeah, whatever." The gypsy muttered. Violet waved to her and then ran off, and Rai rolled her eyes. She was not happy about what was going on.

'_Things need to change around here.'_

……_._

"Huh." Cain said bluntly, eyes questioning the scene before him.

"Heh." Scarlet smirked.

"Well… at least… I think Mina and the others are safe…?" Maki muttered as he stared down at his broken-down door, which was lying on the ground. Nobody was inside his house. The girls that they left back there were gone, and he wasn't aware why, but Maki just knew they were safe.

"Sir!" A soldier called out, suddenly running up to Maki. Maki turned around and waited for the soldier to catch his breath, as he handed a note to Maki. Maki thanked his soldier and started to read the note, and then he blinked at Cain and Scarlet.

"According to reports, it was ransacked." Maki said.

"Oh, _really_?" Scarlet said with sarcastic awe.

Maki, ignoring Scarlet, continued, "It says here that they're staying with the King." He ignored the annoyed look on Cain's face. "I can get us there."

"Why are _you_ so annoyed?" Scarlet curiously asked Cain, who shrugged. She faced back to Maki, trying to hide a scowl that Maki saw too clearly. "I'm going to get some equipment."

Maki nodded, not saying anything about the fact that he knew she just didn't want to go see her sister. Scarlet watched as he grabbed a gold chain from around his neck and placed it on Scarlet's hand. "Here." He said. "Just mention my name. It'll get you to the King's side of the palace."

"Huh? That would be okay?"

"I'm sure the King will understand." Maki shrugged. "Let's go, Cain."

"Hn." Cain said bluntly. He gave Scarlet a nod as he passed by her, and he and Maki started to walk towards the palace. They said nothing during the whole trip going there, and even without his chain, they let Maki in. It proved that his position was high enough that nobody doubted him anymore. There was an air of indifference the whole time they walked, but the two never really got along before, so it didn't seem like an unusual thing. Cain knew, though, that some things had to be said.

"If you want to say some thing," Cain muttered when Maki held out a hand and grasped the door that led to Axis's quarters. "Just spit it out."

Maki hesitated. He was staring into space. How did Cain know?

"I don't care if Seth is important to you," The Paladin said in almost a whisper. "If he betrayed us for selfish reasons, I'm never going to forgive him."

Cain stared at him intently, his lips curving into a frown. Maki stared back at him, but not in an intimidating manner. He just looked at Cain with a face that meant he was serious.

"You're just saying that because you saw Scarlet cry." Cain replied bluntly. "Open the door. That conversation was pointless." If it was a conversation, in the first place.

The Paladin's eyes widened. Letting go of the door, he waved his hands in embarrassment, and his face was going red. "What the heck are you talking about?! This has nothing to do with that!"

"Whatever," Cain replied, and he opened the door himself. "And Seth isn't selfish." He said in a low voice, as if he didn't want Maki to hear him. Maki heard it, anyway, and he was grateful for that.

Not that Maki was going to answer that, because even if he had tried to, it would have been drowned out by the noise coming from inside Axis's dining hall. Cain and Maki stood there, staring at the picture before them. Violet and Rai were singing in an out-of-tune voice. Thankfully, only the two of them were the ones who decided to drink some alcohol, and Axis was trying to calm them down. Mina was by the side, speaking to Cheska, who had Cain's smokie in her arms.

"Ah! Cain!" Mina called out with a huge smile. She stood up and ran over to him, and Cheska followed her.

"Look!" Cheska said, laughing loudly. She held out her hands, smokie in hand, and showed Cain his smokie which seemed to be wobbling it's head.

"Wha--?" Cain's eyes went wide.

"Well, Mina wouldn't let me drink!" Cheska replied with a pout. Mina smiled sheepishly. "So I gave it to the smokie, instead!"

Cain looked annoyed as the smokie jumped out of Cheska's arms, but didn't quite land so perfectly on the ground. After it was finally able to stand on its four feet perfectly, it looked up at Cain and tried to bite his shoe off. Cain did all he could not to kick it across the room.

"Hey, it's the idiots!" Rai said loudly as she pointed at Maki and Cain, fingers shaking. "Hey, you! Everything's going to change now, understand? Oi, Maki! Answer!"

"…Right." Maki stared at her. His eyes drifted to Violet, who was singing a strange song. "This is what you guys did while we were away?"

Mina shook her head. She waited for Cheska to take the Smokie and run off to a corner, and she continued. "Just today. Rai's upset about Seth." She looked upset herself as she stared at the ground. Twiddling her fingers, she said weakly, "I'm sorry. The pendant was switched."

"We figured." Maki replied.

"Violet saw it all through a dream, so she asked us all to leave your house." Mina explained to Maki. "She knew it was Seth."

"Does this mean we'll have to stay at that idiot's place?" Cain asked, pointing a thumb at Axis rudely.

Mina frowned at him. "Yes, we're staying here."

Cain shrugged. He winced when Mina pinched him for the glare he was giving Axis, but Axis was used to it by now, so the King said nothing.

Time passed, and Rai and Violet's noise were finally starting to die down. Axis watched as Mina and Cain talked softly in a corner, and Cheska had her head on Mina's lap, asleep. Mina was stroking Cheska's hair and had her other hand on Cain's knee. That girl was unbelievable, Axis thought. She just always found the time to unconsciously care for everyone around her.

Axis looked to the other side of the room. Maki had Rai in his arms and was muttering something about troublesome gypsies, as he carried her to her room.

Finally, he sighed and looked down. Violet was passed out on his lap. He couldn't remember how it happened. She had just suddenly crawled up to him, and before he knew it, she was fast asleep, head on his lap and muttering something he couldn't understand.

"Want me to take her?" Maki asked, as he walked up to Axis. He was stretching his arms. "I just took care of one drunk girl, one more wouldn't hurt."

"I think she'd like that."

The Paladin blinked at him. "What?" When Axis shrugged in reply with a smirk, Maki chose to ignore it and leaned down, hooking his hands under Violet's lithe form and taking her up. Axis stood up and straightened his pants out and was just about to say something when Violet suddenly stirred in her sleep, and her eyes opened slowly.

"Huh?" She blinked, still drowsy, as she looked up to Maki. "Oh. You're back..."

"Yeah," Maki replied, not really paying attention. He was trying to figure out which room she stayed in. Finally, giving up, he looked at Axis and asked, "Hey, what room is Violet sta—"

He was suddenly cut off as arms wrapped around his neck and a pair of lips latched softly against his. Violet was murmuring something against him, and his eyes went wide with shock. Luckily, he didn't drop her on the spot from the surprise. Violet seemed to be in a trance as she just kept continuing saying strange things that nobody could understand. The only sentence Maki understood was, "I wanted to do this before it was too late."

Mina and Cain were looking at the pair, wide-eyed. They said nothing from across the room. Violet finally broke away and drifted back to sleep, and had her head rested against Maki's chest.

Maki was speechless.

Axis broke the silence. "Excuse me," He said. "I think I'll turn in for the—ah, Scarlet."

Turning around, Maki realized that Scarlet was standing by the door. His golden chain was around her neck, and he felt intense guilt, but he didn't know why. Why did he feel guilty? He didn't do a thing.

Scarlet, apparently, thought he did. She turned around and ran out, banging the door on her way.

"Huh…" Maki blinked. He looked down at the girl in his arms.

"Here," Axis said, and he made a gesture to take Violet. "You go after her."

"Why?" Maki asked curiously, but he let Axis take Violet anyway.

"Because you should." The King replied simply. It took him a couple of minutes to carry Violet in a more comfortable manner. Maki nodded and, scratching the back of his neck, took his sweet time to leave the room.

Axis sighed and looked over to Mina and Cain. Mina was looking at him with a questioning look, obviously confused, and Cain had his eyebrows raised.

Suddenly, Violet stirred again, and slowly opened her eyes. She looked up at Axis. "What happened..?"

The King couldn't answer her.

……_._

It took a while for Maki to find Scarlet. When he did, he found her by the garden, sitting on a bench. She had her legs crossed and was scowling at him as he approached her.

"Sorry." Maki said, almost in a whisper.

Scarlet stood up abruptly, and Maki made a few steps back as she prodded his chest in a rough manner. "What kind of an idiot are you?!" She hissed. "She has no memories! How can you be so dumb?!"

Eyes wide, Maki couldn't believe what she was accusing him for. He didn't do _anything._

"You're crazy." He said. But, really, he shouldn't have.

This made Scarlet even more furious as she pushed him away with the flat of her two hands, and cursed him with all creativity. She was fuming, and Maki stood there calmly, staring at her as she yelled at him.

"Scarlet, I didn't do anything." He tried to explain.

She wasn't listening, and pushed him one more time. Neither of them had noticed, but they were already by the castle walls as Maki hit it with a thud with his back.

"_Ow_" He winced.

Scarlet took a hold of his shirt and gripped it lightly. For such a short girl, she sure was strong. She continued speaking, "How can you be so unfair?!"

Maki blinked. This wasn't about her sister's memories any more, was it?

He stared as Scarlet looked up at him with a lot of intensity in her eyes; those eyes, identical to Violet's, but different, for some reason. Scarlet had much more fire in her eyes, something Maki had observed such a long time ago.

"I like you."

There, he said it. He didn't even know it until it came out if his mouth.

Scarlet's eyes widened with shock, and her grip on his shirt loosened. She stared at the ground for a while, and her hand was now flat against his chest, trailing downwards. She didn't seem to be paying attention now, and Maki cursed himself for being so stupid all of a sudden.

"I'm sor—"

He was cut off with a slap from the hand that had been on his chest just a few seconds ago. His cheeks tinged.

"You've got no right to tell me that," Scarlet hissed. "After letting my twin kiss you."

Scarlet walked away, and Maki could do nothing but stare at her retreating back.

**To Be Continued**

**A/N**: YEY, AN UPDATE. And, yes, my story is getting more drama by the chapter. SO, SO sorry about that.


	7. The Rain that Erases

_**Second Glance: Untold Stories **_

**Chapter Seven: The Rain that Erases**

"_Samuel, how's your wife? Samuel? Samuel?"A frail woman held up her hand and waved it around, calling for her eldest son. She was coughing, again and again. The heavy sound of rain falling against their house almost made it impossible to hear her._

"_Your mother's calling for you," said an elderly man to a young swordsman. The young swordsman had a grim expression on his face._

_He reminded his father, "I'm not Samuel. Samuel's dead. He and his wife died a year ago in an accident."_

_His father shook his head. "Maki, please."_

_Giving a long sigh, Maki approached his mother and took her hand, squeezing it tightly and looking straight into her eyes. She couldn't see him, since her illness had already taken her eyesight away months ago. Something clenched at his chest painfully, and he listened to his mother talk to someone who wasn't there. His mother said that he should take care of his future kids. His mother told him to take care of his lovely wife. And not once did she mention her younger son's name, Maki, who was actually the one standing right in front of her._

……

"_Oh, hello." The young novice tilted her head in question, staring right at Maki. "Are you okay? You look very sad."_

_Maki stared at her for a moment. It was Mina, that person that Rai had introduced to him the other day. She was drenched in the rain but not moving, but neither was Maki. Maki replied, "The rain just makes me feel uncomfortable."_

_Mina gave a smile and nodded. "I like the rain. I think it washes away everything. I mean, I can just stand here and pretend there isn't anything wrong."_

_Not knowing what to reply, Maki simply smiled back at her. His brother and his wife had died because of the rain—the carriage they were on slid off the muddy road when they were coming back from delivering goods to Alberta. It brought bad memories to him._

"_Don't you agree?" Mina asked him innocently, but he figured that she wasn't really paying much attention because she was staring straight at the skies._

"_Yeah, I suppose." Maki replied, lying to Mina for the very first time. When he got home that night, the rain was stronger than he had ever remembered, and his mother had succumbed to her illness and had passed away. He didn't cry, but when he stepped out of the house again, the rain fell on his face and, nonetheless, it somehow looked like he was._

……

"I can't believe it's raining…" Cheska pouted to herself as she looked outside the glass windows of the castle halls. "I really wanted to go to the festival."

Mina smiled at Cheska and looked out the windows, too. "Axis said the town's celebrating, anyway."

Cheska looked excited at this. She stared up at Mina with a huge smile. "They are!? They're celebrating in the rain? That sounds like so much fun! I'm going to go tell Cain!"

Nodding in agreement, Mina watched as Cheska started running towards the dining hall, where her brother was. Mina sighed to herself—Cain, Maki and Scarlet were all leaving again the next day. They were going to go after Seth, something nobody wanted to tell Rai. It also depressed Mina just to think about it. A cough shook her out of her reverie, and she turned around to meet Cain's confused face.

"Hey, why was Cheska running towards the dining hall?"

Mina blinked. "She… uh, she was going to tell you that the festival's still on." The High Priestess looked so confused; she tilted her head and pointed towards the direction Cheska ran to. "Weren't you in the dining hall just a couple of minutes ago?"

Raising an eyebrow, Cain said, "I went to talk to Maki about tomorrow. I passed by here… you were talking to Cheska. What the hell, I thought you saw me."

"Huh?" Mina's expression looked comical. At the same time, she wanted to hit him—it was just like Cain to ignore people when he walked by them. In addition, he thought they had seen him, and he had still ignored them. That was Cain, alright.

The High Priestess gave a slight shrug and turned around. She opened the window that she had been staring at, and the rain fell lightly on her face. It had died down to a drizzle, nothing like the heavy downpour that morning. She liked the rain; it felt cool against her face.

Behind her, Cain was staring at her back with a frown. He said, "You're going to the festival in this weather?"

"Sure. The festival only comes once a year. Besides, you guys are leaving tomorrow, so might as well enjoy today. I do think Axis could have moved the festival if he wanted to, though…"

"Ah. Him."

Mina turned her head to give him a disapproving look, and she quickly went back to staring out the open window. She rested her arms on the window sill. "What's with that tone? He's a nice guy; I don't understand why you hate him so much."

Cain gave a mumble in reply, but somehow, Mina could sense his uneasiness, as if he wanted to tell her something. Finally, he said, "He's coming with us tomorrow."

"What!?" Mina exclaimed, and she turned around suddenly. She hadn't realized that Cain was right behind her, and she hit his chin with her forehead. "Ow…"

Looking annoyed, Cain rubbed his chin where he was hit. That had caught him off-guard. Mina had her palm on her forehead, and she looked up at him with an apologetic and sheepish smile. He shrugged in reply and said, "He insisted. I don't know why."

The High Priestess looked upset. She turned around and rested her arms on the window sill again. "I insisted on coming too, you know."

Cain didn't reply, something which Mina had foreseen. She had jumped out of her skin when she suddenly felt his arms snaking around her waist from behind, and he rested his chin on her shoulder without a word. Mina had a confused expression again since Cain rarely showed affection, but she turned towards him and put a light kiss on his temple. All the response she got was a soft incoherent mutter.

Meanwhile, in the dining hall, Cheska was running around. The maids watched her with amusement as she interrogated each one of them about the whereabouts of her brother. She ran towards one of the other halls, where she found Rai speaking to Maki. They didn't seem to notice her, so she slowly approached them.

"She slapped you?" Rai asked with exasperation. "Why'd she slap you?"

"Uh…" Maki looked embarrassed. "She said I had no right because I kissed her twin. But I didn't kiss her twin. You saw it, right?"

The dancer gave him a huge grin. "Well, you didn't give much of a fight, that's for sure."

"What, you wanted me to punch Viole—"

"You didn't have a right to what?"

At this point, Cheska was standing right in front of them and staring at them, waiting for them to finish their conversation so she could interrogate them. Maki looked from Cheska to Rai, unable to answer the simple question. He couldn't tell why, since he told Rai almost everything—except when he was into Mina, because she was their best friend and that was strange—and the dancer told him everything, always told him too much information about her nights with Seth.

"Well?" Rai asked impatiently.

Maki gave a deep sigh. "I told her that I liked her."

Silence. Rai's eyes widened slowly, and before Maki knew it, she burst out laughing, holding her stomach in the process.

"What the hell, Rai…" Maki muttered under his breath. Cheska still stood there, but for some reason, the little girl was also wearing a smile.

"Well, you confessed your love to her right after she saw you kissing her twin sis—"

"Confessed my love…? No, no, no, it was just something that I blurted out on impulse…" Maki looked stunned. "And I _didn't_ kiss Violet. Are you even listening?"

Nope, Rai wasn't listening the least as she laughed some more. Maki rolled his eyes and looked at Cheska, ignoring Rai. He asked her, "What is it?" and his voice was almost drowned out amidst the laughter. Cheska was amused. She could practically see that angry vein on his neck.

"I'm looking for my brother." Cheska told Maki. "Have you seen him?"

Maki shook his head in reply and realized that Rai's laughter had died down. He looked at her from the corner of his eye. At the same time, Cheska gave a sigh and started to walk away. Rai was staring at something behind him, and he realized who it was when he heard Cheska's voice greet the newcomer.

"Hi, Violet! Have you seen my brother?"

"No, I haven't." Violet answered. Cheska nodded and walked away.

Maki saw the confused look in Rai's face. He was just as confused. Violet's voice was so monotonous, and that was rare for her. Turning around to look at her, he saw that she looked so tired. She didn't have her usual playful smile, and her hands were lying flatly on her sides. She seemed too… well, normal.

"What's wrong?" Maki asked Violet. "Hangover?"

Violet averted her eyes, obviously not being able to look at him. "I suppose," she replied, and with that, she walked away.

"Hm." Rai said simply, puzzlement evident. "So she's also angry at you? Man, just yesterday you had a pair of twins. Now you're back to zero."

Rolling his eyes, Maki said, "I did _not_ have a pair of twins."

"Whatever," she replied. "So you don't have a date for tonight, then? That makes two of us. That means you're accompanying me to the festival."

"What?" Maki raised his eyebrows. "There's no way I'm going to that festival in this weather."

Rai gave a yawn, not hearing him. "So, meet me by the gates at around five. I'll see you then." She stretched a bit and stood up, leaving him with a slight frown.

……

Violet's chest hurt and she couldn't explain why. She just felt terrible. A few pictures from the previous night flooded her mind, but it wasn't the fact that she kissed Maki that was haunting her—no, it was something else, but it still did involve her face. She felt guilt, intense guilt.

The sage placed a hand flatly on the castle walls, and then she put her stare towards the empty ground. The people in the garden glanced at her as she passed by_. _She could feel their gazes, but she didn't say a thing.

"Excuse me?"

Violet blinked and put her hand down. She turned around to see a High Priestess staring back at her, one she had never seen before. This High Priestess was shorter than her and a lot skinnier, but she brought a very strong presence. Violet said, "Yes?"

"You're His Highness's friend, am I right?" The girl gave her a huge smile, but Violet could see how fake it was. "My name's Katherine. I'm his fiancée. Have you seen him?"

'_Huh? Axis is engaged?' _Violet wondered. She had forgotten for the nth time. It wasn't really something she was interested in remembering, "I don't know where he is." Then the sage put on a bright smile as if she had suddenly remembered where Axis was. "Maybe he's already in heaven!"

The girl, Katherine, gave a loud gasp, putting her hand over her mouth. Violet didn't seem to realize what she had said, and she just looked back at Katherine with her blank smile. Katherine said, "What are you talking about? His Highness isn't dead!"

"He isn't?" Violet tilted his head. "No, no, he's dead. I definitely attended his funeral."

Katherine looked so shocked that without saying anything else to Violet, she ran off towards the castle doors. She almost tripped in doing so, and Violet watched her retreating back with a confused look. The sage blinked—what had she just been talking about?

……

By the time evening fell, all that was left was a light drizzle. The festival lights were shining brightly and the music was cheerful and loud, and most people went around the streets like it wasn't uncomfortable in any way.

Maki felt like he was taking care of a little kid. Rai kept asking—no, forcing—him to buy all kinds of stuff for her, from food to accessories to stuffed toys.

"Do you want these, too?" Maki muttered, pointing towards a display of bows. He was referring to some that were of the colour red. "What even happened to the old ones you always wore?"

"I gave them to Seth," Rai replied simply. "And, no, I don't want those."

Maki stared. He started, "Rai… you—"

The girl cut him off as soon as she could, and she pointed towards the village centre where dozens of people were dancing to the music. Before Maki could protest, Rai grabbed his arm and pulled him towards the site.

"Hey, it's Maki and Rai." Cheska said, a huge lollipop in her mouth. Behind her, Cain and Mina were seated on a bench. The young thief had seen Rai and Maki pass by, and the latter was being dragged in a silly manner. She was going to say something else, when she suddenly sneezed. The young girl frowned.

"I think you're getting a cold from the drizzle…" Mina sounded worried, as she beckoned Cheska to approach her. The little girl did, and she allowed Mina to wrap a thick cloth around her small frame.

"Isn't that the table cloth you just bought?" Cain asked, eyebrows raised as he watched his sister get comfortable under it.

Mina shrugged. "It doesn't matter." Before she knew it, Cheska had squeezed herself in-between them and hugged Mina's arm. The girl was so obviously shivering and her teeth were now clacking together.

Cain said, "Let's go back to the castle."

"No," Cheska said quickly. "I don't get to spend time with you guys. Let's stay here."

Looking annoyed at his sister, Cain glanced across at Mina, who had a sheepish smile on her face. The High Priestess slowly untangled her arm from Cheska's grip and wrapped it around the child's form, and Cheska was thankful, because it really did feel warmer that way. Cain wanted to tell his sister how stupid she was being. He wanted to say that getting out of the damn drizzle was what common sense was telling them.

"You three look like a family," a voice suddenly said. Mina and Cain both looked up—Cheska was already drowsing off—and they saw Axis, who was smiling down at them.

Much to Mina's surprise, Cain didn't tell Axis to Fuck Off. Cain had kept silent and simply looked the other way. Mina was relieved—maybe Cain was finally getting some manners.

"I haven't seen Violet or Scarlet." Mina told Axis with a weak smile. "I'm not too surprised about Scarlet though, but I thought Violet would have enjoyed this festival."

"Ah, Violet." Axis gave a sort of puzzled look as he said that name. He also looked exasperated at the same time. "My fiancée came running to me this afternoon. Apparently, Violet had told her that I was dead."

"Wha…?" Mina's mouth was slightly open. For a while, she couldn't find a thing to say. "She said you were _dead_?"

Axis nodded. "I have no idea why she would do that. Do you?"

Mina shook her head. Just that moment, a woman called for Axis. Mina looked over to the source of the voice, and she saw a small female waving at Axis. She had a huge smile on her face. Mina asked, "Your fiancée?"

Nodding, Axis gave a slight wave and walked slowly over to Katherine. Mina watched as Axis spoke to her with a gentle smile on his face. She watched as Katherine hooked an arm around his and pulled him close, and Cain saw that Mina was staring, so he spoke up.

"What?" Cain asked her.

Blinking, Mina stared at Cain. "I just think it's sad. Violet is right, he's not in love with his fiancée."

"Violet," Cain started with a frown. "Probably doesn't even remember he has a fiancée."

Mina chuckled and looked over at Axis and Katherine again, except that she couldn't see much because the rain suddenly strengthened again, and her eyesight went blurry. She felt Cheska stir, and at the corner of her eye, she could see Cain getting up.

"Cain, what?"

All around them, people were rushing to get under the shade. Even the music had stopped. Mina, Cain and Cheska were one of the few who were unmoving. Cain leaned down. He was talking louder because of the noise of the rain. He said, "Go bring Cheska to the castle. Now."

"Why?"

But before she got a decent reply, Cain was already walking away quickly. Mina felt upset. She knew that expression of his, it was the one he always wore when he knew something terrible but refused to tell anyone. What exactly did he see?

Cain turned a couple of corners with a grim face. These streets all looked too familiar to him. But when he finally thought he had caught up to _him_, a dead end met him. He gave a deep sigh and turned around, ready to head back to Mina. He was probably mistaken. There's no way he could have seen—

"Hey."

There it was. That familiar, nonchalant voice.

Looking ahead of him, Cain saw him—Seth. His partner had his hands in his pockets and had a grin on his face.

"The pendant. The glass flower," was all Cain could tell him. His expression was placid, something Seth had seen all too often.

"I don't have them with me." Seth replied with a sheepish grin.

"Why are you here?"

"Well…" Spreading his arms as if inviting Cain to embrace him, Seth bellowed, "I missed you!"

Cain stared. He raised his eyebrow.

Laughing loudly, Seth put his hands back down. Then, he said, "Nah, just here to tell you that I don't mind if you hold grudges. Also, I just wanted to ask you to look after Rai, please."

"Why did you do it?"

Seth placed a hand over his mouth and seemed to look like he was thinking about it. The two of them were speaking in loud voices. They were at a distance, neither of them making a move to get closer. Seth said, "I don't need a reason. I just do it. We've been partners for years, you should know that."

Cain shrugged. He looked away. "Why should I look after that annoying dancer for you?"

"Because you owe me."

His eyes suddenly becoming stern, Cain snarled at his partner. He was finally started to grow impatient and lose his temper. "I don't owe you a fucking thing."

"You owe me, and you damn know it." Seth's voice was also starting to grow furious, something that was unusual for him. Even when he was in the process of sticking a dagger in someone's guts, his face had always been calm, sometimes even smiling. Cain had known that.

Suddenly, Cain was right in front of Seth. He grabbed Seth by the front of his shirt and glared at him. "You're a fucking traitor, you should be thankful I'm not trying to kill you right now."

"Fine," Seth's voice was back to calm. "Kill me. Kill me right now."

And Cain wanted to as he glared at Seth, who stared back at him. He tightened his grip… and after a few moments, let go. Seth smirked at him, and then he walked away. Cain let him walk away.

……

"Ugh, I hate the rain!" Katherine was trying to squeeze her hair to get the water out, but to no avail. She sighed again and again in a miserable manner as she stood beneath one of the festival stalls. A couple other people were crowded with them, none of them recognizing Axis amidst the turmoil. Katherine whispered to Axis, "You should ask them to leave and give us this stall's space!"

Axis wasn't paying attention. He was staring at the village centre. A couple of other people were doing the same, pointing and whispering. Katherine, curious, looked at where they were staring. When she saw what it was, she had the same puzzled expression as everyone else.

There, in the middle of the centre, alone and silent, was Violet. She just stood there, looking up at the skies. Her hands were flat on her sides and her mouth was carved into a slight frown. Her stare was perfectly blank.

"It's her," Katherine muttered. "I think she's seriously deranged. Your highness, let's get back to the castle, please?"

To Katherine's surprise, Axis shook his head slowly. He said, "You should go ahead. I'll take Violet back and follow… I'll see you there, okay?"

"Huh? Your highness?"

"Like I said, please call me by my name…" Axis gave his fiancée a weak smile before getting out of the shade to approach Violet. If she had said anything more, the rain had drowned it out, and he was slightly thankful for that. Violet had started walking, and people were no longer pointing at her. Katherine gave an impatient huff. Slightly hurt by Axis's actions, she turned around and headed for the castle.

……

Mina was drenched to the bone by the time she and Cheska got back to the castle. She had to force Cheska to get a change of clothes, because the child had whined and kicked initially, just wanting to go to bed. Mina had refused to let her do so, saying she would catch a fever. When she put Cheska to bed, the High Priestess got ready to get her own change of clothes. She went to the bathroom and was just about to undo the ribbons to her clothes when the door opened. For a while, she was shocked.

Then she saw Cain standing there, door on the knob, his wet hair sticking to his face. He had a frown.

"I need to take care of Rai."

Mina chuckled—she couldn't help it. "For Seth?"

Cain nodded. He knew that she just thought he had a change of heart towards the dancer. He didn't need to tell her that he had spoken to Seth, that damn traitor—but still kind of his friend.

"Don't worry," Mina stood on her toes pressed their foreheads together, and she tangled her fingers in his pitch-black hair. "She'll grow on you."

"Whatever," he muttered.

……

Violet was humming an unfamiliar tune as she stared at the dark sky and blindly moved her feet around. When Axis called her name the first time, she didn't hear him, so he called her a second time, a third time, until she finally realized he was there.

"Hello," she gave him a bright smile.

"As you can see, I'm alive." Axis said with a sheepish smile, though he didn't know why he had said that.

Violet looked puzzled. "You died?"

"Huh? No, no…" Axis was just as puzzled now. This girl will never cease to confuse him. "Uh, Violet, are you okay?"

The sage shook her head. Axis was surprised that she even answered him honestly.

"I'm not very good with interpreting what I see. What's worse is, sometimes I forget that they haven't even happened yet. I mix up my memory a lot." Her voice was serious and he recognized it. She had used that tone with him the first time they had met. "Or maybe I just don't want to understand it in the first place. Why do I see nothing but terrible events?"

She turned around again and slowly started walking away from him, but she didn't look like she had a destination. In the distance, thunder rumbled. Axis had no choice but to follow her. He didn't know what to say, so he kept silent.

"I thought I had finally seen something good…" Violet continued. "But I guess I was wrong. I had seen myself kissing him. I thought it was something that meant to happen."

Axis was very confused now. He said, "Maki?"

Violet nodded. "I forgot about her."

"Her?"

She paused, hesitated. Finally, she said, "Yes, my twin."

"You…" Axis stared at her back and was still following her. She was circling the fountain in the village centre. "You remember? But I thought…"

"I remember Scarlet tricking me to drink the potion," Violet gave a sigh. "She probably forgot that things like that are somehow negated by my body after a while. It's something that came with my strange dreams and visions of the future. I'm cursed, after all, like she said. Saw the massacre of our parents and didn't even realize until it was too late…"

She was muttering, and Axis could barely understand what she was saying because the downpour made it all the while more difficult.

"She has always been giving up everything for me," Violet said in a clearer voice as she finally turned around to stare Axis in the face. "And this time, she could have been happy being with that Paladin. That's what I saw—her and that Paladin. But I thought it was me, not her. And I… destroyed everything for her, again. I kissed him, didn't I? She saw what happened? That's what happened last night?"

"You didn't know." Axis stated. "It's not your fault."

"It's always my fault, don't you understand?" The sage looked pained as she said this. "Everybody always gets hurt because of me. Everybody is always sacrificing for me. Do you know how many people have been killed because of me? I didn't ask to have this power, so why did they go after me!? Why did they have to kill our whole family!? Why are they after me again!?"

'_But, I thought…'_ Axis frowned, not speaking. _'I thought they were after Violet because Scarlet betrayed the guild…?'_

"I don't want more people to die because of me." Her voice was shaking, and when Axis took a step forward, she had backed away much quicker. She looked like she was actually scared of him. She was having a hard enough time looking at his eyes.

Axis shook his head. "Nobody needs to die."

"But they do! They always do!"

"I'll make sure nobody dies." Axis told her, his eyes serious. He held out a hand, as if asking her to take it. He wasn't used to seeing her this way. The Violet he had grown accustomed to couldn't keep a conversation this long. She never said anything that made any sense. He watched as Violet stared down at his outreached hand with narrowed eyes, as if she wanted to say something but couldn't.

Much to his surprise, Violet suddenly burst out crying. She buried her face in her hands. "Haven't you figured it out yet, Axis? You're going to die! Axis, you're going to die!"

**To Be Continued**

YEEEEEEAH, UPDATE.

Thanks for the nice reviews, guys. I'm sorry it took me a million years to update. I don't even play the game anymore, so I think I'm _very_ behind. I hope you all forgive me on that. Also, as usual, this chapter is not proofread, so please forgive the bad typos. (: Actually, it'd probably help if you tell me the typos that you see, so I can correct it?


	8. The Beginning

_**Second Glance: Untold Stories **_

**Chapter Eight: The Beginning**

"_Get out of my damn way!" John Coltin pushed a young beggar away. He cursed under his breath, muttering things about how the streets were being dirtied by these indecent people. The child gasped and fell on her knees, and she immediately crawled away. "You see, Axis! This is why our family is the rightful heir, because that Tristan does not get rid of these rats! It's shameful!"_

_Eight-year old Axis nodded and didn't say a thing. He looked at the young beggar out of the corner of his eye. He flinched—the young boy wanted to help her, but he knew he would get into trouble for it._

_John Coltin saw his expression. He said, "Compassion is for fools, don't lag behind."_

_Axis nodded again and raced up to meet his uncle's pace._

…

"_Our plans can't be foiled. Tristan's bastard must be killed."_

_Axis's lips were pressed into a thin line, and he did nothing but nod to his uncle's command. He had seen a picture of the woman—her name was Mina. It was rumoured that she was in Alberta, and the king's troops were already on their way to explore the city. His uncle wanted the priestess assassinated before the royal army found her. _

_Before the royal army arrived at Alberta, Axis had sent himself there. He knew it was probably an impossible feat to find the princess. Of course, she was probably being hidden very well. That's why, imagine his shock when he found her, just sitting on a bench and vulnerable to the world. _

_He had spoken to her, and they chatted about nothing in particular—Comodo, Juno, the likes. She had such a bright smile to her face, so innocent, as if she didn't have a worry in the world. And as Axis glanced at this face of hers, he knew he didn't want her suffer the way he was suffering. _

_Since Mina wasn't accounted for (something Axis was thankful about), Axis was the rightful heir to throne. He was called the 'puppet prince' since his uncle dictated everything to him. Nobody knew why, since they all knew he was a good man. But when his uncle turned his back, Axis did all he could for the people. And when his uncle passed away, he was the only one who mourned. That was how good a person he was._

…

"_Haven't you figured it out yet, Axis? You're going to die! Axis, you're going to die!"_

_Axis stood still. He looked at the sobbing sage with an unexplainable expression. The rain throbbed against their skin. Violent fell down on her knees and put her hands on the ground for support._

"_Violet," Axis crouched down beside her and put a hand on her shoulder. "It's fine. I'm not going to die. Let's go back to the castle, you need to rest."_

_The sage looked at him, not trusting his every word. But she nodded and stood up, following him back to the castle._

…

Scarlet, Maki and Cain were discussing their plan of action before they left. Mina was also with them even if she wasn't going to come along. They spoke in hushed tones and were straight to the point, and even Cain could see that Scarlet and Maki weren't making eye-contact.

Cain liked this. It was quick and simple with no unnecessary inputs. People should get into arguments more, he thought.

"Where the hell is the damn Axis! I thought he was supposed to come with us!"

"Ah…" Mina looked sheepish. "I'll go check on him."

"No need. I'll go and hit him in the head," Scarlet said as she stomped off to the King's chambers. Mina and Cain eyed each other, and then they stared at Maki.

Maki seemed taken aback. "What!"

From the hallway, they could hear Scarlet yell, "Rai, where's the King!"

Silence. Then Rai yelled back, with just as much intensity, "I think he's still in his bedroom! Why are we yelling! Hey, hey, you shouldn't just barge, only I can do that—!"

Silence.

And then, Rai's hearty laugh filled the whole place. Scarlet was speechless. She was planning to bash Axis's head in, but instead, all she could do at the moment was stare. There on Axis's bed was Violet. Axis, on the other hand, was nowhere to be found.

Scarlet stomped her way back to the rest of the group. Following her was Rai, who was giggling hysterically. Scarlet was muttering, "I'm going to kill him, I'm going to rip his head off and…!"

"What did you see, Rai?" Maki asked his friend, purposely ignoring Scarlet.

"We saw Violet. We didn't see Axis," replied Rai swiftly.

"I'm right here."

They all looked towards the direction of the voice. There was Axis. He looked so tired, as if he didn't get a night's sleep. "I was discussing emergency plans with the army. And, no, Scarlet, nothing happened."

Rai was still giggling. "What _did_ happen?"

Axis gave a weak smile. "She refused to let me get out of her sight for some reason, so I let her stay over at my room. I left the minute she fell asleep, though. Like I said, I've been planning with the army."

Scarlet still had a frustrated expression, but she said nothing else. Of course, nobody missed the way she glared at Axis. Just to get rid of the tension, Mina asked, "Why were you planning with the army, Axis?"

"The rebel army from the north," answered Axis. "We've been getting reports that they're moving… there's a chance they might attack while I'm away. That's all."

When Prince Michael the Third was alive, he had angered the people from the northern lands. He had been known as a selfish Prince, crushing those who didn't give him what he asked for. There was a time that Prontera was going through a famine, and Prince Michael had demanded for food stock. The Northern people were also going through a famine and had to decline—enraged, Prince Michael had sent troops, who had attacked a farming town. This had caused a war, something which Axis has been trying to fix. Still, the war had been going on for so long that conversations were no longer listened to.

"Should you really go, Axis?" Mina asked gently. "It seems the city needs you."

Axis shook his head. He couldn't meet Mina's eyes, as if he was hiding something. Everyone noticed this. Axis said, "I've already decided to come along. Don't worry."

Mina looked like she wanted to say something else, but Scarlet suddenly moved and she was caught by surprise. Confused, Mina looked around and realized that Scarlet was no longer around—she had cloaked herself. The High Priestess looked at Cain with an inquiring face. Cain shrugged and nodded his head towards the direction of Axis's room. Sure enough, Violet came strolling out in the hallway, yawning and rubbing her eyes.

"Whose room was that?" Violet asked in a cheerful voice as she tilted her head to the side. "The bed was amazing. I wouldn't mind staying there again."

"That was my room," said Axis. "Don't you remember anything from last night?"

Violet blinked and shook her head. She glanced at Maki and back at Axis. "Oh my, I didn't kiss you too, did I?"

This caused Maki to sputter. He didn't know that Violet remembered that incident, since she acted like she was so clueless right after. Rai started laughing hysterically, and then something hard—Scarlet's foot—hit her ankle and she gave a sharp yelp. The gypsy glared at an empty space beside her.

Axis stared at Violet, biting back a smile. "No, you didn't kiss me."

…

Just South of Prontera, a distance away from the high gates, an attack was being planned. A few hundred men itched for battle, their weapons ready to hit human skin. Their expressions were all disgruntled as a tall, rugged blacksmith riled them up for the battle that was to come. The blacksmith, the apparent leader, spoke in loud yells, effectively getting the attention of all the men.

"It is the day for revenge, my men!" he yelled, waving his huge axe in the air. "These bastards will finally pay for the lives they took so many years ago up until this very day. We will avenge our brothers and sisters, our children who had no warning about the cruelty—all of them were killed for one city's greed. What do you say, men!"

The men cheered and cursed; some yelled battle cries.

"I will not lie… the Prontera forces are strong. Lives will be lost from both sides. But do not be afraid, for our cause is righteous!"

More yells. Somewhere in the back, a middle-aged man joined in the cheering, but his hands were shaking from nervousness. He had heard rumors about one of the Generals—a Paladin who managed to rise the ranks because of trust from the King himself. And aside from sheer power, he also had the ability to outwit most enemy troops in the blink of an eye. Five years ago he was the lone soldier who foiled the plans of the rebel group camping on the outskirts of Prontera. Today, he was one of the most trusted Generals.

After the leader gave his last call for preparations, he separated himself from the crowd and nodded his head towards an Assassin Cross who was leaning against a tree. It was Seth, and he looked impatient.

"Is this going to work—tricking these fools to being our bait?" Seth asked the blacksmith.

The blacksmith shrugged. "It's all we got. The boss says they're good enough, and the supply of fire arm we've given them should make the right push."

Seth sighed. With a shrug, he stood up straight and started to brush off the dirt on his shirt. The blacksmith had his eyes transfixed on Seth. By raising his eyebrow, Seth inquired what he wanted.

"Seth," the blacksmith started. "Did you take the pendant?"

"No. No, I did not."

…

From within the castle walls, the King and his companions were finally ready to leave. Mina, Violet and Rai were there, bidding farewell to the group. Scarlet wasn't with them. Everyone but Violet knew she had probably gone ahead to meet her team in a place her sister wouldn't see her.

Cain was looking around the place. Finally, he tilted his head (an unconscious action) and asked Mina, "Where is Cheska?"

Mina blinked and realized that she hadn't seen his little sister for a while now. "I'm so sorry… do you want me to look for her?"

Shaking his head, Cain shrugged. "She might've just wandered off again. Just tell her we already headed off."

"Oh!" Violet suddenly cut in. She gave Cain a huge grin. "Are you looking for the noisy, little girl? She went to the market, something about getting a 'going-away-present' or so! Oh, oh, and I asked her to fetch me some sweets, too! I rather love the caramel a—"

Before Violet could finish her sentence, a loud explosion resounded through the whole city. The explosion was so strong that the ground shook, and Violet gave a sharp yelp as she tripped right into Rai, who gave her own high-pitched shriek as they both fell into the ground. Cain held Mina by the shoulders to prevent her from falling forward, and Maki had to take hold of a nearby pillar. Castle servants all around them were making panicked screams.

With an expression of terror and shock on his face, Axis threw open the nearest window. He peered outside, towards the city, and could see that a thick black smoke was rising to the sky. It was originating from the center of the city, where the main roads intersected and tourists came to see the grand fountain of Prontera. Yelling and shrieking could be heard from the distance.

"Cain…!" Mina called, but she was too late. Cain was already headed towards the castle exit, no doubt to look for his sister. His face was furious, his brows knitted together.

Maki reached out and grabbed Mina's wrist, since she was just about to follow after him. The High Priestess looked frightened. She had no idea what was going on—none of them did. She would feel much safer if she was next to Cain, not because he could protect her, but because she would know if he was hurt or not. Mina stared at the hand grasping her wrist and then at Maki's face, her eyes asking him to let go.

"It's too dangerous," said Maki. He looked at the King, who was now shaking his head at the scene before him and was collecting his thoughts. "May I have permission to head to the area?"

Axis thought about it for a while. His mind seemed to be in a maze. Finally, he said, "Yes, yes. Please hurry."

Letting go of Mina's wrist, Maki followed off towards the direction Cain went. Rai and Violet were staring out the window. Rai was going on and on about what kind of bastard would do this, and Violet was unmoving, her expression unexplainable. Axis could see that her eyes were almost blank, as if she wasn't really looking at the scene before her.

Just outside, a group of soldiers ran up to Maki when they saw him exit the royal gates. All of them wore frantic expressions. Behind them, the Paladin noted that Scarlet was standing on the high wall, her hand perched on a concrete statue for support. Her face looked pale but serious as she looked down at him, as if she were awaiting his next action.

"Scout the area!" ordered Maki to the soldiers. "First priority is the citizens. Get the injured to safety, and clear the area of citizens. Does anyone have a damage report?"

A nearby soldier, who was panting in exhaustion, raised his hand. He had just come from place in question for the sole reason of reporting what he had seen.

"The… the rebels from the North are here. Captain Griggs was near the area and has engaged with them, along with some troops…" the soldier panted. "…some civilians have also joined in. Many are injured."

As he said his report, yet another explosion resounded. It came from the east. The rebels had targeted the church this time. Maki ordered the soldier to go straight to the King and repeat his report, and he sent off the rest to rush into the city. As soon as the soldiers departed, Scarlet leapt down from the wall and landed in front of Maki.

"Cain rushed passed by me. He headed towards the explosion," stated Scarlet.

Maki gave a nod. "I know. His sister was in the market. What are you going to do?"

Raising an eyebrow, Scarlet stated simply, "I am going with you, what else?"

Without asking any questions, Maki shrugged and went off towards the town center, where the first explosion had gone off. He guessed that most of the fighting was going on there. As they ran, they passed many frantic people. Mothers were gathering their children and pushing them towards their houses. Many children were crying. A number of people were yelling, some were running towards the same direction as Maki and Scarlet. They passed by some soldiers who were trying to calm the citizens down, and some were tending to some people who were injured and had been carried from the area of the blast. As they got nearer and nearer to the city center, the yelling got louder and rubble littered the streets.

The fountain was destroyed, its debris scattered all throughout the place. The city soldiers were outnumbered, but they still put up a fight against the rebels. At the corner of his eye, Maki could see the captain that the soldier had mentioned before—he was engaged in a battle with a burly knight. Indeed, some civilians had joined in the fight, no doubt trying to protect their homes. Nearby, a child could be heard crying as she searched for her mother.

A blacksmith recognized Maki quickly, and came charging towards him, his axe in the air. With a yell, he swung his weapon at Maki, who quickly dodged it and unsheathed his sword, slicing the man across the chest. The blacksmith fell to the ground, clutching his chest and yelling in pain.

"Cain!" Scarlet yelled. "Cain! Over here!"

Maki looked towards where Scarlet was yelling. Cain was standing on the roof of one of the low buildings and was scanning over the area. He looked at Scarlet quickly. Cain was hissing something under his breath, curses no doubt. Without saying a word to Scarlet or Maki, he rushed off again, jumping from rooftop to rooftop before he was out of their sight again.

Scarlet blinked, slightly impressed—Cain clearly cared so much for his sister.

"I'm going to help him." Scarlet faced Maki. "I don't care about your people, but I have a debt to pay to Cain."

Maki wore a frown after what she said, but knew it was not the time to get into the topic of her apparent heartlessness. The Paladin didn't even respond to her, just nodded his head and left her there staring at his back. Scarlet watched as he ran towards the crying child who was in the middle of all the fighting and she knew he was going to take her to safety before joining the fight. As he ran towards the child, he kicked a knight who tried to attack him, sending the knight crashing into heaped pile of stone.

Jumping up to the rooftop Cain had been on earlier, Scarlet headed off.

…

Back at the castle, severely injured people were being taken into the courtyard, and the royal priests and priestesses tended to them. Usually they would have been sent to the church, but as the King had learned, that had also been blown up.

Axis watched as Mina helped and was tending to an old man who had a large wound on his leg and was howling in pain. Rai was playing a song that helped the healers, making their stamina increase. Now and then a soldier came up to the King to give him an update about the battle. He learned that the rebels were decreasing in number, and that their biggest damage so far had been the explosions they had set off earlier. It had no warning and had involved many innocent people. And, after the church explosion, another one had gone off—this time by the houses by the southern part of the city.

The King wondered how they got into the city. He was sure that the guards that stood by his gates would have noticed a group of that size suddenly entering. He was sure they would have looked suspicious, carrying that much explosives. Axis stopped that train of thought quickly. He had no time for that—he had to think for the present.

It was no use, though—he couldn't exactly think straight. He hadn't slept in more than a day, and his body was ready to give up on him. In frustration, he ducked into one of the empty rooms (the castle had many) and leaned against the wall, exhausted. He closed his eyes and felt himself sliding down the wall, until he was seated on the floor, his back still resting on the concrete.

"Oh, Axis," said a familiar voice. "Are you alright?"

The King opened his eyes and found Violet looking down at him. She must have followed him there.

"I am. I'm alright." Axis forced a smile at her, and it looked painful.

Violet walked in front of him and sat down, peering into his face. Her expression looked naïve, as if she had no clue that there was a riot going on. She said, "Do you want to rest? You should rest even just for a while."

Axis forced another smile. He didn't even bother telling her that what she suggested was exactly what he was doing before she came in. Axis blinked—Violet had gingerly reached her hand forward and rested it on his face. She placed it near his ear, and smiled at him softly as she massaged his temple with her thumb. Axis gave a soft sigh and closed his eyes, leaning against her hand, getting the little rest he could.

"It is coming near," Violet said. "You must be careful, Axis. I do not believe that death can save lives. Only a living person can save lives."

The King didn't respond.

…

Another painful yell came from another rebel as Maki succeeded in bringing him down with a blow of his sword. Beads of sweat were forming on Maki's forehead and he was breathing heavily. There seemed to be no end to the rebels, and most of them just kept standing upright again once fallen. More explosions had gone off, and Maki wondered how long they could keep this up—he could see that some of the Prontera soldiers were starting to lose hope.

A distance away, Maki could see the form of a person forming. It was difficult to really get a clear view since the air was polluted with smoke and dust. The person was walking slowly, and as he got nearer, it became more visible to Maki who it was.

"Seth!" yelled Maki. "Seth, you bastard!"

Maki ducked as a flash of light passed by him; some strands of his hair got caught and were instantly burned to a crisp, and at the corner of his eye, he saw a fellow soldier engage the wizard who had tried to bring him down.

Seth came into clear view now. He was carrying an unconscious child in his arms—Maki couldn't believe it at first, but it was Cheska. The Paladin wondered why he had the girl.

"Is your guild involved in this, Seth?" Maki hissed. He had half the mind not to come charging at Seth, in fear of harming Cheska.

With a smirk, Seth flipped his hair playfully. "Who knows?"

Maki stared at him, half glaring, as he approached. For some reason, those involved in the battle around them refused to interfere, even though the two of them seemed to have their guards down. They all knew who they were, and most were curious as to what their conversation was about.

"Here you go," Seth said in a sing-song voice as he handed Cheska to Maki, who took her quickly into his arms. "Poor child got caught beneath some rubble. Don't worry, she fainted more out of fear than anything else."

The Assassin Cross turned his back on Maki. He was stretching his arms in the air and yawning, as if nothing was going on. Maki kept silent as he watched Seth walk away. The Paladin was furious—he couldn't believe he used to trust this guy—this person whom his best friend was still in love with.

Seth cocked his head and turned to look at Maki. "You'd better prepare. It's only just begun."

As he said that, another explosion went off—Maki's eyes widened in horror.

"The Palace!" gasped a soldier behind him. With that, Seth disappeared.

…

Scarlet was still looking for Cain's shadow when she heard the last explosion. She stopped in her tracks and looked behind her. Smoke had erupted into the sky again, this time it came from the Palace. The safest place in the City had been brought down. This was what told Scarlet that whom they were dealing with weren't just the amateur rebels from the North. Those rebels grew up as farmers, never capable of this feat.

She growled and headed off again. This time, it didn't take her too long to find Cain. He was standing in an alley, his weapons in his hands, and was surrounded by five men—three Assassin Crosses and two High Wizards. As soon as Scarlet saw their faces, everything was crystal clear to her.

They were all members of the guild they had left. Of course they had something to do with this mess. It just made much more sense now. And, the last explosion was at the Palace—their true target. Everything else had been a decoy.

Cain stared as Scarlet stepped down beside him. She had her weapons in her hands too, ready to fight.

One of the High Wizards gave a laugh. "Now, this is a sight to see. The two traitors are here."

"It's a sight to see, alright," muttered Scarlet. "Never thought we'd ever be fighting like this."

Before Cain could reply (not that he was going to), Scarlet stared at him.

"What's the plan, Cain? After we dispose of these guys, are you going back to the Palace, or are you going to continue your search for your sister? Will it be Mina or your sister?"

Cain was staring at her placidly, but Scarlet could swear he had an expression that made it seem like the answer to her question was the most obvious thing. He said, "I'm going to look for my sister. Mina can take care of herself, my sister's the most vulnerable."

That was about the most words he had ever told her. Smirking, Scarlet nodded.

**To Be Continued.**

…

**Author's Note:**

Hi, guys. I never thought that I would ever get around to updating—but I still keep getting messages from all of you that I should, even after all these years. Well, I started playing the game again on a Private Server so it somehow rekindled my passion to work on this story. ;) I hope I still have the hang of it. I know, I know, the story's much more serious than when I started it, and my writing style has probably changed so much. I hope you guys still like it, though.

Kseru


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